Cornerstone Community Church seeks to lead congregation toward a Christ-centered life

Sitting on the corner of faith and hope, Cornerstone Community Church practices the art of intentional discipleship, shaping the hearts and minds of men and women toward a Christ-centered life.

Randy Thornton, the interim senior pastor for Cornerstone, defined his vision for the church as one that equips its body through the practice of life-giving discipleship and an attention to training the youth. 

“Our goal is to cultivate a church that resembles that of Ephesus or Antioch. My heart beats to train young people for Christ,” Thornton said. 

Cornerstone Community Church was originally founded in 1981 under a different name. That same year, elder Samuel Dolsey joined with a desire to bring diversity to the congregation. In 1987, the church transitioned to a reformed doctrine and changed its name to Cornerstone Community Church. Over the years, the church has grown and became more diverse.

Thornton, mentor of former pastor Willie Taylor, actively walked alongside Cornerstone Community Church, encouraging its growth and discipling its body. After Taylor’s passing, Thornton adopted his mentee’s church and continued to carry the torch Taylor lit. Thornton’s desire as an oversight pastor is to mimic Jesus and prepare churches for spiritual revival. 

“Jesus changed the world not by building a church but by intentional discipleship,” Thornton said. 

Cornerstone continues to embody Taylor’s mission through its repentance of division, emphasis on unity and desire to practically disciple the body of Christ.

The church currently hosts one Sunday service at 10:30 a.m. Additionally, the church offers “Sunday Munch” once a month for young married couples to be able to meet in fellowship with one another and eat together. It also hosts active men’s and women’s ministries. Recently, the church hosted a women’s gathering event called “The Well Lynchburg” with over 100 women from different churches. 

While these ministries are thriving, Dolsey stated that the heartbeat of the church is to encourage discipleship within the church body. Cornerstone hosts a Friday night Bible study for young adults led by elder Virgil Moore, who is in pastoral training. The church also hosts a Wednesday night Bible study for all congregants. 

“We love to see young people being discipled and in turn stepping up in ministry,”
Dolsey said.

Cornerstone has put this claim into practice through a recent internship program it collaborated on with Liberty University. Through this program, students studying pastoral ministry can intern at the church and preach under the guidance of a head pastor. 

“Knowing God is more than just learning about him,” Thornton said. “The journey of a believer is an everyday adventure with the creator, and our church wants to walk alongside those who embrace this expedition.”

Callaghan is a feature reporter for the Liberty Champion