Online Worship for June 6, 2021

Welcome to Church of the Holy Cross’s live streaming worship service for June 6, 2021. Feel free to follow the service text by scrolling down, or you may download and print the service in PDF format below.

Online Worship June 6, 2021
Second Sunday after Pentecost

Rev. Eric S. Anderson, Pastor

WE GATHER TO WORSHIP GOD

Welcome:                                                                                Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Prelude: Siciliano — Bach                                                        Kayleen Yuda

Call to Worship: based on 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1                   Stefan Tanouye

Leader: The spirit of faith attested in Scripture lives in us. As the ancients did, we believe and so we speak,
All: Because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us with Jesus, and we shall be together in the Holy Presence.

Leader: Everything is for your sake, so that grace, extending to more and more people, may increase the thanks that rise to God.
All: So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day.

Leader: The afflictions we endure prepare us for an eternal glory beyond all measure.
All: We look toward what we cannot see, beyond the temporary to the eternal, to the all-surpassing love of God, a house not made with hands, everlasting in the heavens.

Leader: Let us worship God!

Invocation: based on Psalm 138                                              Stefan Tanouye

We give you thanks, O LORD, with all our heart and before all the listeners in the universe, we sing your praise. You have exalted your name and your word through steadfast love and faithfulness. On the days when we have called you, you have answered us, and increased the strength of our souls. Assure us in worship today of your presence in trouble, your preservation in distress, your deliverance in peril. Fulfill your purpose for us, O LORD, as your steadfast love endures forever. Do not forsake us, the work of your hands, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Hymn #497: Guide My Feet                                                     Eric Anderson
                                                                                                Doug Albertson
                                                                                                Movement led by Genie Phillips

Scripture:                                                                                Stefan Tanouye

1 Samuel 8:4-20, 11:14-15
Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, “You are old and your sons do not follow in your ways; appoint for us, then, a king to govern us, like other nations.” But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to govern us.” Samuel prayed to the Lord, and the Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. Just as they have done to me, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so also they are doing to you. Now then, listen to their voice; only—you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”

So Samuel reported all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run before his chariots; and he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his courtiers. He will take one-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and his courtiers. He will take your male and female slaves, and the best of your cattleand donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves; but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”

But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; they said, “No! but we are determined to have a king over us, so that we also may be like other nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.” Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingship.” So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they sacrificed offerings of well-being before the Lord, and there Saul and all the Israelites rejoiced greatly.

Mark 3:20-35
…and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, “He has gone out of his mind.” And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons.” And he called them to him, and spoke to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come. But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property without first tying up the strong man; then indeed the house can be plundered. “Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter; but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— for they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”

 Then his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside, they sent to him and called him. A crowd was sitting around him; and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers and sistersare outside, asking for you.” And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”

Story/Sermon: Followers                                                        Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Pastoral Prayer:                                                                      Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Please join me in the Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come.  Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen

Instrumental Anthem: Sinfonien 2–Bach                               Kanako Okita

Call to Offering:                                                                      Stefan Tanouye

We invite you to an offering. Monarch and governments fund themselves with taxes and fees, required payments. To be truthful, communities of faith have done the same many times over the centuries – but that is not the case here. Those who worship contribute out of their sense of God’s call, the balance of their obligations, and the resources available to them. Together, these gifts may not create a house not built with hands, eternal in the heavens, but they do strengthen the gathering of a worshipping community. Please send your offering through the mail in an envelope to 440 West Lanikaula Street, Hilo, Hawai’i, 96720, or give online at holycrosshilo.com/donate. Let us pray together:

Offertory Prayer:
We would be true followers of Jesus, O God, true members of a holy family, true apostles empowered by your Holy Spirit. As we present these gifts to you and your Church, make clearer and clearer the path of discipleship and the summons of grace. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Vocal Anthem: They’ll Know We Are Christians                     Eric Anderson
                                                                                                Doug Albertson
                                                                                                Movement led by Genie Phillips

Service of Holy Communion

Invitation
Come, you who are waiting,
from the depths of sorrow and pain,
or the heights of joy.

Come, you who’ve waited,
for a graduation like it used to be,
a memorial service to say good-bye,
a church service to be
something different from what it is –
a gathering with passing the peace,
singing the hymns,
easy interaction with children.

Come, from personal waiting for a job
or a day off, to get pregnant without fears,
or to meet friends for a night out,
and from the community waiting
that is in the atmosphere, in the strangeness
as we want and fear personal contact.

Our souls wait for God,
more than those who watch for the morning,
and, as light comes, God is here.

Words of Remembering

We remember a time Jesus was at table,
but life was so complex and confusing,
he and his followers
didn’t have a chance to eat.

We have been confused like that.

We remember a time Jesus’ family
was so worried for him
they wanted to take him far away
from all choices and risks,
to remove him both from danger
and from people he loved.

We have felt torn apart like that.

We remember Jesus opened up family
to mean those sitting at that table
as well as precious ones from the past.

We have learned in these days
of virtual family, masked family,
essential family, six-foot-away family,
church family,
that everyone has heard,
as at the Passover table,
when he blended loved ones together –

This is my Body broken for you,
this, here and now and always,
the Cup of the new covenant.

Words of Reconciliation and Prayer of Consecration

The psalmist knows that when we wait on God from our depths, we begin to name for ourselves all that we have done which we truly wish we had not done, all that we are complicit with and do not challenge, all that we have left unsaid and undone which could have made a difference in the lives of God’s children. We know that God does not mark up against us our regrets, but forgives us fully. And we know that if the expectations of our lives are swept away, we have a table from God, a meal not made with hands, that feeds us hope and steadfast love.

Rest your hands lightly upon the elements of Communion that are with you. We ask God’s grace on us and on all those who are in our prayers this morning and God’s blessing on our elements and our hands.

Unison:
God, in whose open hand we place our own, whether we have met you long ago or in this very moment, we pray that you send your Spirit of life and blessing upon all of us gathered anywhere, in any way, so that this Bread may be broken and received in love and this Cup poured out to give the world hope. Risen Christ, as you have faith in us, may we have faith in you. Breathe in us, that we may breathe in you. Amen.

[Breaking of the bread]

Sharing of the Elements

Leader: We are welcome to this gift of God, the Bread of Heaven.
Unison: We are Christ’s family in the Bread we share.

[Eating of the bread]

Leader: We are welcome to this gift of God, the Cup of Blessing.
Unison: We are Christ’s family in the Cup we share.

[Drinking from the cup]

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Leader:  Let us pray in thanksgiving for this meal of new covenant, rejoicing that we have embodied the love of the family of Christ’s available on every human table, never hoarded for “family first,” but wide as grace itself.

Unison:
Spirit of Christ, you have blessed our hands and our hearts. May this family loaf give us courage to speak faith and act love, not only in places set aside, but in your precious world, and may drinking deeply renew our covenant with all life. Wrap your hopeful presence around all whose bodies, spirits, and hearts need healing, and let us live your compassion in the days to come.  Amen.

Announcements                                                                      Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Benediction                                                                             Rev. Eric S. Anderson

Postlude: Finale Jubilante — Willan                                          Kayleen Yuda

Permissions:
Guide My Feet
Lyrics: African-American traditional
Tune: GUIDE MY FEET, African-American traditional
Public Domain

They’ll Know We Are Christians
Tune and Text: Peter Scholtes. Text and music © 1966, FEL Publications, assigned to the Lorenz Corporation, Dayton, Ohio. All rights reserved. 
Streamed by permission: ONELICENSE #A-735890

Communion service by Maren Tirabassi
https://giftsinopenhands.wordpress.com/2021/05/28/holy-communion-liturgy-for-june-6-2021/
Used by permission of the author

                                                                 Dates to Remember
Today, June 6 – Trustees meeting after worship in the Building of Faith

Minister                                            Rev. Eric S. Anderson
Moderator                                        Woody Kita
Lay Reader                                       Stefan Tanouye
Chapel Decorations                          Bob and Sue Smith
Choir Accompanist                          Kanako Okita
Choir Director                                  Doug Albertson
Organist                                            Kayleen Yuda
Hand Bell Director                           Anna Kennedy
Childcare Coordinator                     Evonne Shioshita
Movement Leader                            Genie Phillips
Projected Imagery                            Sue Smith
Web Master                                      Ruth Niino-DuPonte  
Videographers                                  Eric Tanouye, Jonathan Tanouye, Doug Albertson

This week at the Church of the Holy Cross

• Bible Study with Pastor Eric: Tuesdays, 3:00 p.m. via Zoom
• Pickleball: Mondays, 12 noon, Thursdays, 8:30 a.m., Saturdays 1:00 p.m., Building of Faith
• Online Song – Wednesday, 11:00 a.m. online
• Community Concert – Resumes June 11 Friday, 6:00 p.m. online