Thank you for joining us for this live stream (or recording, as the case may be) of Sunday worship. May it bless you! You may need to click “Play” to launch the stream, which will be live around 9:50 AM.
Welcome to the live stream of worship from Church of the Holy Cross for Sunday, July 20, 2025. You will find the service outline below, and you may download and print the PDF to follow more easily.
Service of Worship July 20, 2025
Sixth Sunday after Pentecost
Rev. Eric S. Anderson, Pastor
WE GATHER TO WORSHIP GOD
Please note that audio and video of this service are being live streamed on the Internet and will be recorded. The right rear section of the sanctuary will not be captured by any cameras. Please be aware that in other sections you may be visible at times.
Prelude: Toccata in A Minor Kayleen Yuda
Lighting of the Candles
Ringing of the Bell
Welcome Rev. Eric S. Anderson
* Call to Worship: (based on Genesis 18) Gloria Kobayashi
Leader: The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre in the form of three strangers on the road.
People: Not knowing these were messengers of God, Abraham rushed to welcome them as guests.
Leader: The visitors were welcomed warmly, given ease to rest.
People: The visitors were welcomed warmly, given special food to eat.
Leader: Abraham was generous, but God was more generous yet.
People: God made Sarah and Abraham parents, ancestors, and leaders of the faith.
All: Let us worship God!
* Hymn #451: Be Now My Vision (v. 1-4)
* Invocation: (based on Colossians 1:15-28) Gloria Kobayashi
We praise you, O Christ, image of the invisible God, firstborn of all Creation. We praise you, the head of the Church, first of all things. We thank you for reconciling us to God. We have been wayward and estranged, but in your grace we have found our sacred home. We rejoice in the riches of your glory. Amen.
Anthem: Wonder is Not Enough Eric Anderson
Time with the Children Rev. Eric S. Anderson
Scripture: Amos 8:1-12 Gloria Kobayashi
This is what the Lord God showed me—a basket of summer fruit.He said, ‘Amos, what do you see?’ And I said, ‘A basket of summer fruit.’ Then the Lord said to me,
‘The end has come upon my people Israel;
I will never again pass them by.
The songs of the temple shall become wailings on that day,’
says the Lord God;
‘the dead bodies shall be many,
cast out in every place. Be silent!’
Hear this, you that trample on the needy,
and bring to ruin the poor of the land,
saying, ‘When will the new moon be over
so that we may sell grain;
and the sabbath,
so that we may offer wheat for sale?
We will make the ephah small and the shekel great,
and practice deceit with false balances,
buying the poor for silver
and the needy for a pair of sandals,
and selling the sweepings of the wheat.’
The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
Surely I will never forget any of their deeds.
Shall not the land tremble on this account,
and everyone mourn who lives in it,
and all of it rise like the Nile,
and be tossed about and sink again, like the Nile of Egypt?
On that day, says the Lord God,
I will make the sun go down at noon,
and darken the earth in broad daylight.
I will turn your feasts into mourning,
and all your songs into lamentation;
I will bring sackcloth on all loins,
and baldness on every head;
I will make it like the mourning for an only son,
and the end of it like a bitter day.
The time is surely coming, says the Lord God,
when I will send a famine on the land;
not a famine of bread, or a thirst for water,
but of hearing the words of the Lord.
They shall wander from sea to sea,
and from north to east;
they shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord,
but they shall not find it
Luke 10:38-42
Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing.[a] Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.’
Sermon: Summer Fruit Rev. Eric S. Anderson
WE RESPOND IN WORD AND DEED
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
* Hymn #446: Jesus, Still Lead On (v. 1-4)
Call to Offering Gloria Kobayashi
There is a time to renew, and there is a time to work. There is a time to learn, and there is a time to put your learning into the world. In this moment, let Jesus’ teaching take form in gifts which help people who need hope or home. Whether you share your gift here in the church today, through a gift online, or via an envelope in the mail, let the offering now be received.
Offertory: Brother James Air Kayleen Yuda
* Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise Him above ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost – Amen
* Offertory Prayer Gloria Kobayashi
We offer our gifts in this time, O God, a time which is good for some, bad for others. We offer our gifts to that those who suffer may have relief. We offer our gifts so that we might be part of building your reign of love and peace. Amen.
* Hymn #494: We Who Would Valiant Be (v. 1-3)
Announcements Rev. Eric S. Anderson
Benediction Rev. Eric S. Anderson
Postlude: Joyous Dialogue Kayleen Yuda
* Please stand if you are able.
PERMISSIONS
Toccata in A Minor
Jan Pieter Sweelinck
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890
Be Now My Vision
Trad. Irish Text
Trans. by Mary E. Byrne, 1905
Versified by Eleanor H. Hull, 1912
Public Domain
Tune SLANE Trad. Irish melody
Harm. by David Evans, 1927
© 1927 Oxford University Press
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890
Jesus, Still Lead On
Text by Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf, 1721
Trans. by Jane Borthwick, 1846
Tune SEELENBRAUTIGAM by Adam Drese, 1698
Public Domain
Brother James Air
James Leith Macbeth Bain
Public Domain
We Who Would Valiant Be
Text by John Bunyan, 1684
Tune ST. DUNSTAN’S by D. Winfred Douglas, 1917
Public Domain
Joyous Dialogue
Traditional melody
arr. Alice Jordan
© 1980 Broadman Press
Streamed by permission ONELICENSE A-735890
Wonder is Not Enough
Eric S Anderson
Streamed by permission of the composer
IMPORTANT DATES
Today, July 20 – Board of Deacons meeting is cancelled
Mondays, 11:30 a.m. –Pickleball lessons; contact Connie 808-936-7534 or
Ruth at rnduponte07@gmail.com to sign up.
Wednesdays, 5 p.m. Bible Study in Pastor’s Study and via Zoom. The meeting link will be in the Weekly Chime. Bible Study resumes July 23.
Wednesdays, 12 noon –Pickleball lessons; contact Connie 808-936-7534 or
Ruth at rnduponte07@gmail.com to sign up.
Other Faith Groups that meet at Church of the Holy Cross
The United Church of Christ, Pohnpei – Sanctuary, 12 noon
Rev. Bensis Henry
Congregational Christian Church of American Samoa – Sanctuary, 2:00 p.m.
Rev. Sitau Ofoia, Jr.
The Bedesta Church – Sanctuary, 4 p.m.
Rev. Edmes Edwin
Pastor Rev. Eric S. Anderson
Moderator Stefan Tanouye
Vice Moderator Lorraine Davis
Lay Reader Gloria Kobayashi
Chapel Decorations Jean and Woody Kita
Organist / Pianist Kayleen Yuda
Hand Bell Director Anna Kennedy
Projected Imagery Sue Smith
Live Stream Director Ruth Niino-DuPonte. Bob Smith
Videographers Eric Tanouye, Bob Smith, Woody Kita,
Mace Peng, Cindy Debus
Sound Engineer Ben Yamaki
Sunday School Teacher Gloria Kobayashi
Sunday School Aide Johanna Narruhn
Church Office Manager Pearl Momi Lyman
We welcome you to worship this day. Church of the Holy Cross seeks to help its members, friends, and visitors follow the guidance of God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit, encouraging all people to love one another according to the teachings of Jesus. We live and teach the faith, speak good news, minister to people near and far, and work with other households of faith and helping agencies to improve our community and our world. To support our ministries, please visit our Donate Page.
