| Rev. Chester & Beverly Clarke | Where We Began |
Cornerstone Assembly of God began in September of 1980 under the pastoral leadership of Chester and Beverly Clarke in a private home. Shortly thereafter the church moved for a brief period to the old Womans Club building downtown, and subsequently for a year met in the facilities of St. Barnabus Episcopal Church. After purchasing property from Mrs. Rutland, they constructed the first phase (5000 sq feet) of the facility they now occupy moving during October of 1981. The Church has subsequently undergone three expansions and the facility presently occupies 10,000 square feet. After serving the church and community faithfully for 27 years, Pastor Chester and Beverly Clarke felt the leading of the Lord to continue their missionary ministry in Viet Nam on a full-time basis. The Clarke's last service at Cornerstone was held September 30th, 2007. |
| Pastor David and Pat Matheny | Who We Are |
 | After serving several years in Florida, Missouri, and Washington State as associate pastor, senior pastor, district youth director, and college vice-president, Reverend David and Pat Matheny assumed the pastorate of Cornerstone Assembly of God in October 2007.The Matheny's enjoy being a part of the Cornerstone church family. Their devotion to God, genuine love of people, and great leadership ability has led to both the growth of this ministry and the school, and adds to the legacy left by the Clarkes. |
Why We're Here |
Cornerstone Assembly of God exists to connect people to Jesus Christ and to each other, growing together in the Christian faith. |
What We Do |
At Cornerstone we try hard to help people of all ages to grow mentally, spiritually, emotionally, and socially. We teach the bible with practical applications, worship God together, train for service to God, and have activities for all ages with opportunities for fun, fellowship, prayer, and growth. |
| Our Assemblies of God Roots |
The Assemblies of God grew out of the Pentecostal revival, which began in the early 1900s in places such as Topeka, Kansas, and the Azusa Street Mission in Los Angeles. During times of prayer and Bible study, believers received spiritual experiences like those described in the book of Acts. Accompanied by “speaking in tongues,” their religious experiences were associated with the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Jewish feast of Pentecost (Acts 2), and participants in the movement were dubbed “Pentecostals.” The Pentecostal movement has grown from a handful of Bible school students in Topeka, Kansas, to an estimated 600 million in the world today.
Many participants who were baptized in the Holy Spirit during revivals and camp meetings in the early 1900s were not welcomed back to their former churches. These believers started many small churches throughout the country and communicated through publications that reported on the revivals. In 1913, a Pentecostal publication, the Word and Witness, called for the independent churches to band together for the purpose of fellowship and doctrinal unity. Other concerns for facilitating missionaries, chartering churches and forming a Bible training school were also on the agenda.
Some 300 Pentecostals met at an opera house in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in 1914, and agreed to form a new fellowship of loosely knit independent churches. These churches were left with the needed autonomy to develop and govern their own local ministries, yet they were united in their message and efforts to reach the world for Christ. So began the General Council of the Assemblies of God.
Assemblies of God churches form a cooperative fellowship. As a result, the organization operates from the grass roots, allowing the local church to choose and develop ministries and facilities best suited for its local needs.
