A prayer-led life

DALE CITY, Va. --Listen to the Lord and follow His direction. As the rector of All Saints’ Church in Dale City for almost 29 years, John Guernsey lived by that biblical principle in all aspects of his life.

Whatever issue lay before him, big or small, he consistently offered it up in prayer and then was obedient to the call. Sometimes, the message was clear from the start, other times it meant pressing in for further clarity.

But no matter what was asked, Guernsey said he always served the Lord first and it was his desire to put the Lord’s plans above all else that defined a ministry that had a far-reaching impact for those in his congregation, others in Prince William County and ultimately himself.

On June 13, Guernsey officially stepped down as All Saints’ rector to devote his energies full time to being the bishop of the Diocese of the Holy Spirit in the Anglican Church of North America. The move was prompted after 18 months of searching for a new rector before All Saints’ called the Rev. Dan Morgan in April to take over.

The decision to give up his spiritual authority at All Saints’ wasn’t an easy one for Guernsey, given the deep roots he had established at a place he’d spent half his life. The congregation was made up of more than just parishioners he saw on Sundays; they were friends, prayer partners and most of all supporters of his calling.

But when he felt the Lord made it clear it was time to move on, Guernsey obeyed. There was no other choice.

“John Guernsey is the epitome of a humble servant in the Army of the Lord,” said John Peyton, the pastor of Reconciliation Community Church in Manassas.

Leaving his mark
Guernsey’s impact in this community starts first with All Saints’. When he took over as the rector in December of 1981 at age 28, after serving three and a half years as an associate rector at Christ Church in Alexandria, All Saints’ was in the process of constructing a church building at its current site on Saratoga Lane.

All Saints’ was the combination of two former parishes that totaled 36 families, but by 2009, the congregation had grown to over 500 people in average Sunday attendance under Guernsey’s leadership.
With more people coming to All Saints’, the church realized it had outgrown its Saratoga Lane building and in May of 2001 purchased land with the intention of building a larger facility on Gideon Drive next to Hylton Chapel. Construction for the facility is currently under way on the 27.9 acre property.

“During the years, he has grown spiritually,” said All Saints’ parishioner Lucia Anderson, who was on the search committee that recommended to the vestry that Guernsey be called as rector. “But what’s remarkable is that he’s dragged this congregation along with him, kicking and screaming and opening up ways to us to deepen our spiritual life that I never thought were true.”

Suzy Speare, another long-time All Saints’ parishioner, agreed.

“I would not be the person I am today without John Guernsey,” said Speare, who was on the vestry in 1981 that called Guernsey as All Saints’ rector. “I can say that without reservation. He’s guided us and challenged us and led us. He’s been a real leader and where he was taking us, he was going to.”

In the community, Guernsey made his presence known as well.

He was instrumental in helping raise awareness for the homeless. In January of 1987, different churches took turns each week sheltering the homeless. This movement helped lead to the eventual construction of the Hilda M. Barg Homeless Prevention Center in Woodbridge.

“We love because He first loved us,” Guernsey said. “Our God is a missionary God.”

In the early 1990s, a proposal to build an off-track betting parlor in Dumfries met widespread resistance with Guernsey helping to lead the charge. The proposal was defeated.

“He’s not an activist or a radical,” said Maureen Caddigan, Prince William County Supervisor for Dumfries “He’s a man of God. He speaks so eloquently. If he didn’t believe in it, he wouldn’t be there.”

In 1995, Guernsey shared the Prince William County Human Rights Award with Peyton for their work on improving racial harmony in the community.

“He proved you could be brothers on earth and it has nothing to do with denominations,” Peyton said. “It was always about salvation. There is nothing I would not do for him. I’d lay my life down for him.”

At the request of then-Prince William County Schools Superintendent Ed Kelly, Guernsey, as the president of the Eastern Prince William Ministerial Association at the time, and his fellow pastors looked for ways to break through racial divisions.

Citing in Guernsey’s words the “oft-quoted statement that 11 a.m. Sunday is the most racially segregated hour in American life,” Taste of Heaven was created as an event held every two years on a Sunday morning at Hylton Chapel. In the summer of 1996, the initial Taste of Heaven drew 33 area churches and 4,000 people.

“John would say, ‘Christianity has nothing to do with skin, it’s about sin,’ ” Peyton said. “He helped heal this community.”

Trust has always been at the heart of Guernsey’s dealings with others.

“If he’d give us his word on something, you knew it would happen,” said Prince William County Supervisor John Jenkins, who oversees the district where the new All Saints’ church is being built.

Over the years, Guernsey had opportunities to leave All Saints’. In the mid 1980s, he was offered a position to be the canon to then-Bishop Peter Lee in the Diocese of Virginia, but did not feel led to accept. He was also in the running to become the bishop of Colorado in 1990, but was not elected.

After that, he said he received 60 to 70 requests over the years to put his name into the hat for other positions, but each time declined to be considered. All Saints’ was his priority and he planned on staying there.

Moving on
He ended up steering the church through a tumultuous time, starting in 2003 when the Episcopal Church consecrated its first openly gay bishop, V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire.
That decision by the Episcopal Church led to a split within the denomination and put All Saints’ plans on building its new church on hold.

In November of 2006, All Saints’ and the Diocese of Virginia reached an agreement where All Saints’ retained its property on Gideon free and clear, while the diocese retained the property on Saratoga Lane.

A month later, 99 percent of the All Saints’ congregation voted to leave the Episcopal Church and go under the protection of the Church of Uganda. In the process of all this, Guernsey had become one of the national leaders among the group of biblically orthodox churches that had left the Episcopal Church.

In September of 2007, he was consecrated a bishop in the Church of Uganda for the 53 churches in the United States that had severed ties with the Episcopal Church.

Last summer, All Saints’ transferred into the newly formed Anglican Church of North America. As a bishop, he currently oversees 38 churches that comprise over 10,000 members all over the country, with the furthest being two churches in New Mexico and two in Colorado.

For three years, he served as rector and bishop, but the responsibilities of both prevented him from giving each position his full attention and it became clear it was time for All Saints’ to release him to minister to the wider church as a bishop.

It was an emotional decision, but one that both the congregation and Guernsey fully embraced.

As he took the pulpit for the last time as All Saints’ rector June 13, the 57-year-old Guernsey used his sermon as a thank you to all who had helped him through the years, from clergy to lay leaders to the congregation itself. It was typical for Guernsey to make others the focus and not himself.

He choked up at times as he expressed his gratitude in overseeing for 28 years the only church he’d ever served as a rector, something special in itself. On average, rectors don’t stay that long in the same place.

But then Guernsey was always on one timetable and that was God’s. As he finished up his sermon, he emphasized to the congregation the importance of continuing to spread the word of the Gospel to so many who need to hear it.

To that end, he remained the shepherd to his flock. At the core of his ministry, Guernsey loved reaching out and touching the lives of others through teaching and preaching and one-on-one counseling.

Even though he was stepping down, his call to encourage and equip others never lost its relevance.

He stressed the need to be expectant when it comes to God’s plans and be attentive to what He is calling you to do. It’s the best way to live your life Guernsey believed and no one exemplified that better than the man speaking from the pulpit that day.

“It’s a huge transition for me to give up the day to day engagement with All Saints’,” said Guernsey, who will continue to call Woodbridge home when he’s not travelling. “But with all the farewells, there will be grief and loss, but also joy and excitement over what God is doing next.”

Sports editor David Fawcett can be reached at 703-530-3911.