Origins and Early History of Cornerstone Church

The Birth of Cornerstone Church

The body of believers at West End Assembly of God, Mechanicsville Assembly of God and Huguenot Assembly of God met together on April 30, 1979 to commission those called to be a part of a new church in Chester, Virginia. At that meeting, Dr. H. Robert Rhoden, Pastor of West End Assembly of God, our mother church, shared how he and his church had been praying for two years for God to establish a church in the Chester area. During that time, Pastor Rhoden had received a letter from Gary Williamson explaining the burden God had placed on his heart for Chester.

Gary grew up in the Chester area and left to attend Bible college. At the meeting on April 30, Pastor Gary explained, "We would come home to visit, and I would say, 'I'll be glad when the Lord does something here, because the people need it. The flock in Chester is scattered.' I never thought it would be me. We would pray, 'Lord, send someone.' Then the Lord spoke to my wife, Sharon, and me on the same day, that we were to come back to Chester and begin a church. We made several trips down, the first one in September 1978 and we moved in April 1979. We have come on the knowledge that God has called us."

On Sunday, May 6, 1979 the new church held its first worship service to the glory and praise of God, and was named Cornerstone Church, Assembly of God. The meeting was held in a renovated plumbing shop on Centralia Road in Chester, Virginia. That service was attended by 110 people.

In 1980, the church felt a need to expand and moved its meetings to the Chester Community Center in Chester, Virginia.

On Cornerstone's second anniversary, Pastor Gary said the following during his sermon:

". . . Cornerstone Church did not begin in the thoughts of man. The key was [that] God willed it and people obeyed. Your obedience is as impor­tant as mine and Cornerstone is blessed because you are being faithful to God's call. It was not man's desire that brought about this church; it was God's.

"Our responsibility is to be willing for God to make us fit together. That is when God starts using us.

"Some of you God will use to counsel the numbers that come for emotional healing. Some of you will become prayer warriors, real inter­cessors. Some of you will organize and be involved in evangelism, out­reach ministries and many other vital functions. . . .

"God is the builder . . . .

"You are part of God's master plan. You will be part of the ministry ahead. You are not a separate entity from the church; you are the church. It is as spiritual as you are. It is as faithful as you are. Friendly, loving, dedicated people are the church. Remember this, whether we are part of it or not, God will have a living, vibrant, power-filled church. It is as certain as God's promise — I will build My Church. Cornerstone is part of that church. [We] are part of that church, if we remain teachable, faithful and caring for one another.

"Our past has been miraculous — God simply decided this church would be and it is. God has brought us this far and He will lead us on. He has given us a dream. I hold to what God has spoken to my spirit. The day will come when I [will] see the power of God falling in the streets. We are to minister His Kingdom life to the world around us. This dream is im­possible by human effort but it is as certain as the will of God."

In 1983, continued growth required the church to move its Sunday morning worship service to the Thomas Dale High School auditorium in Chester, Virginia. Evening services continued to be at the Chester Community Center.

In September 1983, Pastor Gary shared this vision with the congregation:

"There is going to be a Healing Center! The beginning location will be 10551 Chalkley Road where we, Cornerstone Church, are beginning to build. Multitudes will pass through the doors of this ministry, rising healed in the name of Jesus.

"I foresee buildings for housing the needy; a storehouse for sharing with the poor; structures for educating believers in the foundational truths of God's Word [and] preparing them for life and ministry; a counsel­ing network coupled with intercession for bringing miraculous healing to the souls of men, the healing of relationships and families. There will be phone counseling to become a listening ear and a voice of en­couragement to many.

"It will not be a ministry of the elite, but a grass roots ministry with each member serving in the grace God has given him.

"The anointing will be realized in greater measure with each successive year. Extension ministries will increase as doors open, calling for this ministry to come to them.

"God's grace will abound, His Lordship exalted. Holiness will become the desire of each believer's heart because of the glory being re­vealed.

"But you must be a people refusing to be divided, refusing to give Satan the smallest foothold in any relationship, especially within this body. You must refuse to speak evil of a brother, refuse to mar anyone's character. You must determine to speak well of one another, determine to cover sin with love, determine to go to one another to resolve dif­ferences between you and not carry those differences to another. Then the light of God's glory in the face of Christ Jesus will shine and all the world will see it."

In January 1986, the congregation of Cornerstone moved to its present location at 10551 Chalkley Road.

The Lord spoke prophetically through Pastor Gary on Sunday, August 9, 1987 (the Sunday before his death):

"For the Lord has ascribed for you a set course. There is a time ahead that has been predetermined by the Lord. There is a time ahead that shall not be turned or altered by men. For God has appointed His in­tercessors in this day and age. These are people who are rising for­ward. Now they are coming forth to do the bidding of the Lord.

"And as Ezekiel spoke forth and he began to prophesy, he began to speak to the wind and the wind came forth and it began to blow on those sun- scorched bones. God is now calling His people together and you're beginning to hear the wind coming from the north, the wind coming from the south and from the east and from the west. You hear the wind of my Spirit blow­ing and you begin to hear the clamor of God's people coming together in unity. It looks like discord. It looks like disunity but it is the wind of the Spirit blowing. It is the wind of the Spirit blowing and that wind is causing this commotion. That wind is causing this confu­sion as bone is coming to bone and it looks like disorder to the natural man.

"But I the Lord your God am calling the body of Christ and it will be anointed and I am even now breathing into my church. Even now I am blowing my breath into my church. Those people who will seek me in their inner chambers will see what I am about to do and they will be a part of it and they will be a part of causing it to come to pass. For I the Lord have set the course. It shall not be altered."

The Death of Pastor Gary Williamson

On August 14, 1987, a drowning accident took Pastor Gary Wayne Williamson to be with the Lord.

The months that followed were filled with questions about God's direc­tion and intention, but also a faith for the future. During that time God brought several men to Cornerstone to minister and some were considered as candidates for the position of pastor.

Pastor Rhoden and officials of the Potomac District directed the church and Reverend Gerald (Jerry) Qualls served as interim pastor. During that time, a part of the congregation decided to leave and begin a new church.

The Call of Pastor Wayne Mancari

Wayne Mancari was the Senior Associate Pastor at Peninsula Christian Center in Redwood City, California, where he had served for almost ten years on staff under Pastor Rick Howard. On June 11, 1988, as Pastor Wayne went through some mail, he came across a quarterly report from the General Council of the Assemblies of God, postmarked April 11. Glancing through the report, he discovered that Pastor Gary Williamson was deceased. Wayne had attended Zion Bible Institute with Gary sixteen years earlier.

Throughout the day the Lord placed a growing burden on Pastor Wayne for Gary's wife, Sharon. His burden was not what one would expect for someone grieving for the loss of a spouse, and it continued to grow until he felt he should call Sharon. He found Sharon's home phone number in the ministers' directory but didn't notice where she lived. When he called, she told him that Gary had gone to be with the Lord ten months earlier. Sharon felt that what Pastor Wayne shared with her had implications for the church and asked him to write it out so she could give it to the elders.

The next morning Pastor Wayne received a call from Carleton Rowsey, who explained that he was one of the elders at Cornerstone Church and he felt that Pastor Wayne should come as a candidate for Pastor. Pastor Wayne explained that he was happy where he was and wasn't interested in moving, but that he would pray with them for direction. Within a week, Wayne had received two sermons from the Lord that he felt were important for Cornerstone to hear. One message was from Hebrews 12 about the necessity of death before resurrection life can be released; the other message was from Hebrews 11 about the importance of encouraging one another to love and do good works.

Pastor Rick Howard and the elders at Peninsula Christian Center had sent out Pastors several times in the past to help churches that were struggling through various issues. As they prayed they felt that they should send Pastor Wayne to Cornerstone to minister the messages God had laid upon his heart.

Two weeks later Wayne flew to Richmond to speak at Cornerstone. During his visit the elders told him more of the church's history, including the fact that an elder had been disciplined the previous month and had left the church. Wayne also had a long meeting with Pastor Rhoden of West End Assembly of God, who had worked closely with Sharon and the elders since Pastor Gary's death. Pastor Rhoden had many questions for Pastor Wayne and at the end of their meeting said that he felt Wayne was the man to pastor Cornerstone. Wayne responded that he was only there to encourage the church and preach the sermons God had given him for the church.

Upon returning home, Pastor Wayne reported the details of his trip to the elders of Peninsula Christian Center. As the days passed, the burden continued to grow in Pastor Wayne's heart for Cornerstone, despite the fact that he still had a great desire to serve Peninsula Christian Center and did not feel released from his ministry there.

Several days later, Carleton called Wayne and said that he felt prompted by the Holy Spirit to ask if he had ever felt he would live in Virginia. This reminded Wayne of something that had happened the previous August. While in the Tidewater area of Virginia on vacation, Wayne and his wife, Diane, had said, "One day we're going to live around here." The idea seemed "right" to them, but they thought maybe they would retire there someday. This had occurred the very same night as Pastor Gary's "Home-going" service when the congregation had asked God to provide someone to take Pastor Gary's place.

Pastor Wayne also recalled how he had been in the Tidewater area again in May of 1988 and had received a gift of $200. Pastor Wayne and Diane felt prompted to deposit the money in a local bank, believing that one day God would bring them to the area. Until Carleton's phone call, Pastor Wayne hadn't made any connection between his experiences in Tidewater and his trip to minister at Cornerstone.

As a result of these events and his growing burden for Cornerstone Church, Wayne began to sense that the Lord did want him to be the Pastor. The elders of Cornerstone Church recommended to the congregation that Wayne be offered the position of Senior Pastor. On August 14, 1988, the anniversary of Pastor Gary Williamson's death, the members of Cornerstone Church unanimously agreed. As Wayne prayed about the situation with the leadership of his home church, their uncertainty changed to a growing conviction that this was God's will. Peninsula Christian Center released Pastor Wayne and Diane from ministry and on September 15 they began their ministry at Cornerstone Church.

The Period of Mourning

After Pastor Wayne's arrival, the Lord began rebuilding the congregation's hope and giving it direction. The sermons and teaching encouraged the people to look at what God had done, what His intentions are for them, the role of warfare in accomplishing His plan, and finding and living in God's purposes. Many of the people continued to feel grief as a result of the founding pastor's death and the church split that followed. In January 1991, however, there was a sense of release and the time for grieving and mourning was over. God had brought healing and strength, and it was time to move ahead.

The Vision of the Church

[The following is an excerpt from the State of the Church Address by Pastor Wayne Mancari, October 1990]

"God has given us a ministry of reconciliation. He desires us to be reconciled to Him, by coming to holiness and having the kind of relationship with Him that He intended. He desires reconciling of relationships with one another in keeping with His intentions for wholeness for us. And He provides for reconciliation for our bodies as we receive the health that He makes available to us through His mercy.

"This church is to be a place of celebration and worship of God. Through all of the creativity that He has endowed us as His children, we are to enter into that celebration. As we offer our celebration and praise we prepare a throne where our King can do 'Kingdom business.' This is symbolized in the hand stretched upward.

"This church is to be committed to ministering to the body of Christ through obedience to God and through relationship to members of this Assembly. As we reach upward, we reach together recognizing that it is together that we receive the promises of God. This is symbolized in the joining of hands.

"This church is to be a place releasing healing to the nations through evangelism and witness for Christ. Beginning at Jerusalem, then Judea and the uttermost parts of the earth, we are to touch this world on our Heavenly Father's behalf, sharing healing of souls, hearts and bodies. This is symbolized in the outstretched hand to the world."