Cornerstone Church of Albemarle

SUNDAY CELEBRATION

Every Sunday morning we meet at 10:00 a.m. to celebrate and grow in our relationship with God and each other! We celebrate God's love and His blessing in our lives. We believe that we can enter into the presence of God as we minister to Him through relevant and contemporary praise and worship. During our Sunday Celebration we also set apart time to hear what God would say to each of us through His Word. We believe that the Bible is the Word of God for us today so all preaching and teaching at Cornerstone is designed to be BIBLICAL, RELEVANT and APPLICABLE to daily life. We also give time for everyone to respond to Jesus Christ and what He is calling us to do and be. We expect God to continue his transforming work in ALL of us as we HEAR and OBEY His Word. The altar is open for ministry as people respond to the Lord.

CELL GROUPS

The cell group is the basic unit of the church. In the Bible, we see that the New Testament church met together in the temple courts and from house to house. The cell group is the house-to-house ministry we read about in the New Testament. For that reason, everyone in our church is expected to become part of a cell group. It is where the "one another" ministry takes place in the body. Cell groups are not home Bible studies, prayer meetings, or social events. A cell group meeting is primarily a time for the church to function as the body of Christ, applying the Word to daily life and ministering to one another through the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE ABOUT OUR CELL GROUPS

EQUIPPING MINISTRY

(Eph 4:11-12 NKJV) "And He [Jesus] gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry...." At Cornerstone we believe that ALL saints are MINISTERS! All believers are called to minister to others within their circle of influence. We believe that all Christians are called to be Christ's ambassadors to those who they spend time with everyday. For this reason, Cornerstone places a strong emphasis on equipping the saints for ministry. We believe that one of one of the primary responsibilities of church leaders and pastors is to train (equip) and mentor others in how to listen, pray and minister to others.

Being equipped is an essential part of being a member at Cornerstone. You will find that as you participating in worship celebrations, a life-giving cell group, encounters and other equipping events, your life will be transformed and you will be happier and more fulfilled in your Christian life and ministry than you ever thought possible!

EQUIPPING AND TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES:

1) THE ENCOUNTER WEEKEND

The Encounter weekend is our first an most important equipping event!

Encounter Retreats are for anyone who is:

1) Seeking a deeper relationship with God!
2) Seeking freedom from past hurts and damaging life patterns!
3) Seeking to live a deeper Christ-centered lifestyle!

Participants are invited to spend a weekend (Friday evening through Sunday afternoon) in discovery of God and His purposes for each life. The weekend is designed to be exciting, refreshing and most importantly - life changing!

Simply defined: An encounter retreat is a special opportunity for you to encounter God and experience a life changing relationship with Jesus Christ!

Whether a person is attending an Encounter as a new believer or as a mature Christian seeking more intimacy with God, the Encounter Retreat is an important investment in your relationship with God. Many who have participated in this special weekend have described it as, the most important weekend of my life!

2) POST - ENCOUNTER COURSE

Our Post Encounter Course is for those who have attended an Encounter and have a desire to be equipped to live an abundant life - a life lived to the fullest, in obedience to Jesus. Since God created us, He has a wonderful plan for our lives. This course gives the believer the basic tools for walking in God's wonderful plan.

Each week deals with a specific and relevant issue:

1) How to overcome evil.
2) How to hear God when He speaks.
3) A Transformed Social life.
4) The Word of God - a fountain of life!
5) Real Sex! - as God created it to be!
6) The Church - God's place of Love, acceptance and forgiveness.
7) The Balanced life of the believer.
8) Baptism - The next step.
9) The Media and the believer.
10) Knowing and doing God's will for my life.

The Post encounter course will be held on Sunday mornings from 8:00 AM - 9:30 AM. The format for teaching will be presentation and small group discussion.

3) SHARE JESUS WITHOUT FEAR TRAINING

Our Share Jesus without Fear training is a day long (Saturday 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM) training that provided the believer with a winsome approach for sharing their faith with others. These training weekends are scheduled once each quarter (every three months.) Participants in this training are given practical training and hands on practice so that sharing Jesus with others becomes a way of life rather than a guilt producing obligation.

4) SCHOOL OF LEADERS

Our School of Leaders training is Cornerstone's primary way of training members to influence their world for Jesus Christ. It is open to those who have attended an Encounter and have completed the Post-Encounter Course.

Leadership, simply defined, is influence. It is our desire to see all believers become people of influence among their family, friends and coworkers. The Bible teaches that; "..we are Christ's ambassadors.." and that we have been given the ministry of reconciling people to God. (2 Cor 5:20) Too often however, in the past the church has become inwardly focused, spending much time, money and effort to produce fat believers - those who KNOW a lot about the Bible but DO very little to be salt and light in the world. (Matt. 5:13-16)

Cornerstone's School of Leaders has both an inward AND an outward focus. The "outward" or primary focus of the School of Leaders is to equip the believer for ministry to others. The "inward" focus of School of Leaders is to instruct and mentor believers for a powerful personal walk in the victory and power of the risen Lord Jesus.

The principles and strategies taught in the School of Leaders covers:

1) Prayer and Spiritual Warfare.
2) Deliverance and Freedom ministries.
3) Spiritual Gift Discernment.
4) Christian Servanthood and Service.
5) Personal Evangelism Training.
6) Mentoring (discipling) others in love.
7) Baptism of the Holy Spirit ministry.
8) Cell Leadership Training.
9) Starting a Cell Group.

The School of Leaders consists of three sections lasting 12 weeks each. Participants are required to sign up for the training and actively participate in the course work by completing written assignments and participating in a number of discipleship training activities. The training is much like taking a college course, in that people who participate graduate with skills and practical abilities for active ministry in the church and the world. The entire course will be offered once each year. Each three month section will be opened for enrollment. Graduation from the School of Leaders is complete when the participant has started his/her own cell group.

5) CORNERSTONE TRAINING MATERIALS

In addition to our Courses and Equipping Events, Cornerstone has a series of four interactive study guides that you will find helpful for use as a daily personal or small group devotional. These resources help you to grow and apply what you are learning.

The guidebooks that are currently available are:

"Getting Started" - Identifying Kingdom Values
"Going Deeper" - Living the Kingdom Life
"Reaching Out" - Extending the Kingdom
"Building Up" - Developing Kingdom Values

6) PASTORAL AND MINISTRY LEADERSHIP TRAINING

The equipping offered at cornerstone can be continued for years through our Cornerstone Bible Institute and seminary located in Harrisonburg VA. Advanced leadership training is available via correspondence or through the local church. Advanced courses of study include Prayer Counseling, Biblical Studies and Pastoral Leadership Training.

Click here to request more information about our advanced training courses

YOUTH MINISTRY

The focus of Cornerstone's youth ministry is to make more and better followers of Jesus Christ among our middle-school and high-school students. In fact, our youth are invited to become fully-functioning members of the body of Christ.

Just as the adults in our church are called to be ministers to one another through cell groups, youth are encouraged to be part of a student-led cell group that meets in a home for relationship, prayer, accountability, and outreach.

The youth ministry team also leads regular training events to equip students and adults for cell ministry. Community outreach events and service projects give students hands-on opportunities to serve the Lord with all their heart and to love their neighbors.

Youth ages 13-18 meet at THE CAVE every Wed at 7:00 pm. The meetings are designed to be fun and encouraging. We openly share Jesus with kids who don't know Him and encourage believing teens in their spiritual growth. Youth Encounter Weekends & other special Youth conferences are planned 2-3 times each year.

The Cave is our 1800 square foot Christian Youth Club on the lower floor of the building. It features Contemporary Christian music. Food service such as pizza & hot dogs with tables and booths for hanging out. Ping-pong, pool and computer gaming.

CHILDREN'S MINISTRY

At Cornerstone, we believe children can worship God, love Jesus, experience the Holy Spirit and reach out to other children. On Sunday mornings, in addition to nurseries for the very young, we have POWER Church for elementary age children.

POWER Church is an innovative approach to children's ministry. The goal of POWER Church is to call children at a young age to a life that is devoted to the Word, fellowship, worship, and prayer. We believe that every member of the church, even children, are called to be ministers.

POWER Church meets every Sunday during the Celebration Service. This ministry includes dynamic worship led by a team that includes children and teens; strong, creative, Biblical teaching that calls children to a life of obedience and commitment, and cell group interaction that is led by adults with the assistance of children. Children learn to pray for and minister to one another under the Godly supervision of a team of committed adults.

We want to reach the heart of each child in our community so that they can minister in the love and power of Jesus to their friends and family.

PRAYER MINISTRY

No ministry can exist much less thrive without prayer, therefore the Prayer Ministry is one of our most vital ministries.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR BELIEVERS TO BE INVOLVED IN THE PRAYER MINISTRY:

1) SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER

The auditorium to our building will be open every Sunday AM from 9:00 am until 10:00 am before the Sunday Celebration service for worship and prayer. Everyone who is interested in praying for revival and God's visitation are invited to come early and pray.

2) Wednesday morning COMMUNITY PRAYER

Every Wednesday morning from 7:00 until 9:00 am Cornerstone sponsors an morning of Prayer and Intercession at the Central Virginia Prayer Center located in the heart of Charlottesville. This prayer session is especially for the work of intercession for revival and community transformation. We meet to join with other area intercessors to "stand in the gap" for our region and our communities.

3) HALF NIGHT OF PRAYER

Half Night of Prayer is designed to bring us into the presence of God in worship and prayer. We meet once a month so that we can minister to the Lord (in prayer and worship) and so that He can minister to us by His Spirit!