1. |
Look for the Light
04:25
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Look for the light
In whatever lamp it shines in.
Truth is truth
Wherever we may find it.
In a cave, in a book, in the voice of a child.
By the beauty of the vessel we can’t be beguiled
For a rose grows on a bush of thorns.
A rose grows on a bush of thorns.
A tree that is tall
Came from just a seed.
When it was small
All that it needed
Was sun, rain and the love of God to grow.
All these things everyone should know
But we forget in our cities of stone.
We forget in our cities of stone.
Look for the light, in whatever lamp it shines in.
*Light is light, though the blind may deny it.
Truth is Truth, though everyone may defy it.
*”Thy Kingdom come
Thy will be done
On earth as it
Is in heaven.”
A promise in a prayer, given by the Son
When the tribes of the world would gather as one.
Still the question asked is, When?
Could it be He’s come again
Like Scripture said He might
Bearing a New Name
And like a Thief in the night?
A Rose bloomed
in the darkness of Akka.
From the Prisoner’s pen
streamed the Glory of God.
Look for the light
growing in the East.
From Carmel in Sharon
come justice and peace.
A New Day has dawned
while people slept.
A promise made, a promise kept.
Look for the light,
in whatever lamp it shines in.
*Light is light,
though the blind may deny it.
Truth is Truth,
though everyone may defy it.
Look for the Light. Búscala.
Look for the Light. Búscala.
* paraphrased from
“Fire on the Mountain Top”
** The Lord’s Prayer (The Bible)
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2. |
Wake Us From Our Slumber
04:39
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Hey you on the ground
Take a look around.
Tell me what you’ve found.
Tell me what you’ve found
that can compare
With the chill in the air
when the sun is risin’
And the dawn is breakin’ out on the golden horizon.
You who are dead,
Lift up your head,
Rise from your bed
And waken from your slumber
And immerse yourself in the wisdom of His words,
That your heart may take flight
like the birds.
Oh God keep your gates wide open.
Let us come inside.
Help us to rid ourselves
of envy, greed, and pride.
There’s no one else to turn to.
There’s no where else to hide
But beneath your protecting wings.
Beneath your protecting wings of love.
Wake us from our slumber.
Wake us from our slumber. (2X )
Then there comes a Man,
The word at His command.
And in words this growing child
can understand
To wake him from his winter
And then clothe the world
in the message that He brings.
As the fragrant flowers
adorn the hills in .......
Wake us from our slumber.
Wake us from our slumber.
As the fragrant flowers
adorn the hills in Spring.
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3. |
With Eyes of Faith
04:54
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* “Lift your hearts above the present
and look with eyes of faith into the future!
Today the seed is sown,
the grain falls upon the earth, but behold.”
Con ojos de fe,
With eyes of faith,
behold! Mirad.
The world in agony writhing, encircled
in pain.
Many expectant awaiting the Counselor’s reign.
But the Sun’s
already come up
Its rays illumine
creation
Give light and comfort,
warm the cold earth once again.
Con ojos de fe,
With eyes of faith,
behold. Mirad.
Tears flow down in anguish and
cover the face
The orphaned and
widowed need
peace and a place.
Promises just
make us laugh.
Few keep them,
not even half of them.
There’s only One with such compassion, love and grace.
Con ojos de fe,
With eyes of faith, behold.
Pronto.
Soon, very soon.
Pronto.
Soon, very soon.
**The present day order will soon be rolled up
And a new one rolled out, then, in its stead.
We see the old one that’s dying, lamenting
and crying.
The birth of a new world is showing its head.
Con ojos de fe,
With eyes of faith,
Con ojos de fe,
With eyes of faith, behold.
Pronto.
Soon, very soon.
Pronto.
Soon, very soon. (2X)
* words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
** paraphrased from the writings of Bahá’u’lláh
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4. |
Mystery of Sacrifice
03:09
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“The mystery of sacrifice is that man should sacrifice
all his conditions for the divine station of God.
The station of God is mercy, kindness, forgiveness,
sacrifice, favor, grace and giving life to the spirits
and lighting the fire of His love in the hearts and arteries.”
“The mystery of sacrifice is that man should sacrifice”
Words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
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5. |
The Bird and the Cage
04:07
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The body is like a cage
that the soul like a bird lives in.
When the cage is old or broken
the bird can fly off in the wind
Free flying, free
Would the bird flyings free at last
return to the cage that is cold?
No, she’d forget those bonds with her freedom to soar
and ascend to glories unknown.
Don’t you know
The bird in the cage must be fed.
The food of the soul is love.
Prayer and service
will strengthen its wings,
draw it closer to the essence above.
Free flying, free
Would the bird flying free at last
return to the cage that is cold?
No, she’d forget those bonds
with her freedom to soar
and ascend to glories unknown.
Free to fly off in the wind.
Free to fly off in the wind. (2X)
We may be entrapped
after being pursued,
beaten, imprisoned in a cell.
But the real enemy
is much nearer than we think,
for the greatest prison is self.
The time must come
when we return to the Friend.
There’s the harvest
and we reap what we’ve sown.
Could be thistles, bitter tasting
or the sweetest of fruits
But there’s mercy. We’re embraced. We’ve come home.
Would the bird flying free at last
return to the cage that is cold?
No, she’d forget those bonds
with her freedom to soar
and ascend to glories unknown.
Free to fly off in the wind.
Free to fly off in the wind. (2X)
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6. |
Within the Hearts
04:03
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(refrain)
We must guard our tongue before we speak
And pray to God to help us in our weakness
So the peace and change that we hope for on the earth will begin.
And we gotta start within the hearts of men.
Material fire consumes the body as its flames burn away the flesh
And of course there’s pain but it lasts for just a time.
But the flame of the tongue of a backbiting man
cuts deeper than a knife.
Such a burning poison for a hundred years there is pain
Extinguishing the heart and soul of light.
(repeat refrain)
You know that there’s a mirror in everyone reflecting its Creator
And the dust gets thick when we neglect to care.
We must place it in the hands of God and wipe away the grime
And polish it till it reflects its splendor
And if all the world would do it, we sure would shine.
And if we see in the stranger and in the friend
The gentle face of Him reflecting in,
The peace and change that we hope for on the earth will begin.
And we gotta start within the hearts of men.
The peace and change that we hope for on the earth will begin.
And we gotta start within the hearts of men.
We gotta start within the hearts of men.
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7. |
Everybody's Lookin'
03:57
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(refrain)
Everybody’s lookin’ for an answer
Lookin’ for somethin’ that rings a bell
Searchin’ for the truth, a cure for cancer.
Tryin’ to make a sick world well.
Well, mankind is runnin’ sightless
like a chicken with its head cut off
Tryin’ to squeeze the blood from a stone.
Thinkin’ from his pocketbook
not listening to his heart.
Forgetting that the cure
begins at home in his own yard.
Weeds are growin’. So is graft.
The bubble’s about to burst.
Minds are blowing, getting drafty
to fit in with the worst.
Someone call a nurse...or a hearse.
Yeah!
(Repeat refrain.)
Everybody’s lookin’, lookin’ for an answer.
Everybody’s lookin’, lookin’ for a, lookin’ for a Well, well, well, well, well.
Well, he’s lookin’ to heaven like Chicken Little waitin’ for the sky to fall
And the Saviour floatin’ down
upon a cloud.
Would the Second Coming be like that or not like that at all?
Or would flying without a license be allowed...by the F.A.A.?
There’s nothing we can say
that’ll change what’s really true.
The truth is one though it may be seen from many points of view,
One for me and you, and you, and you.
Please understand that
I believe that we can make it
With the help of God. Knock on wood!
If you find the pathway go on take it
Leading to world brotherhood.
Well, stretch your hands out
to your neighbor
Ye are the leaves of one big tree
And the drops of one big ocean
The ocean of humanity.
Eternity. Eternity.
Eternity. Eterni – tee, tee, tee, tee, tee, tee, tee, dee, tee
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8. |
His First Counsel
03:13
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Listen to the voice
That makes the heart rejoice.
His first counsel is this:
* Possess a pure heart,
Kindly and radiant heart
that thine may be a sovereignty
That’s everlasting.
The heart’s a treasure, a bounty
beyond measure, a gift from our Lord.
If we keep it from worldly desires,
It surely will soar.
The pure heart: it is empty of
self and is ready to serve.
So the Lord then can fill it with joy,
all it deserves.
* Paraphrased from Hidden Words of Bahá’u’lláh in Arabic #1
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9. |
Teddy Bear and Me
05:13
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Just a little boy in play clothes
Happy and carefree:
There was no place in the whole wide world
That I would rather be
Than sitting in a yard
On a cool grassy lawn,
Under a leafy shading tree,
My Teddy Bear on my knee.
Together we’d be playing
Lots of funny games,
Like trying to catch the leaves that fell
Or making up silly names,
Like “Goobie Goobie Goo”
Or, here’s a good one too,
“Fleebie Fleebie Flee”.
My Teddy Bear and me...
Two buttons for his eyes. My buddy, my pal.
Fuzzy, warm and cuddly head to toe.
We lived in a world of make-believe.
Everyday adventuring we’d go.
We wondered about the stars
Blinking in the sky.
Could there be a ladder tall enough
To put them up so high?
We wondered every day.
Could there be a way
We could learn like birds to fly?
My little friend and I.
Many secrets shared
and stories told.
My Teddy, mostly listened.
He’d be there all the while
with his bearish smile.
His button-eyes just glistened.
He’d simply nod his head
Understanding all I’d said
From morning till the sun
snuck off to hide.
Cozily we slept side by side.
Minutes wander into days.
Days march into years.
Kids grow up
as time goes by.
Soon childhood disappears.
Now a little girl is playing,
Her own Teddy Bear on her knee.
They too invent fantastic worlds
Beneath a now sprawling tree.
When evening sings its song
Another day has gone.
There’s dinner and it’s
off to bed they go.
Her Teddy Bear’s in tow.
Her Teddy and she
get ready to sleep.
Hugs and kisses,
they’re tucked in for the night.
Her Mom and I look on with care
Then gently dim down the light.
And there on a shelf sits someone,
Still honored and well-loved,
My cherished old friend with button eyes
Sees everything from above.
My Teddy and I recall
When I was as small as she
After a day of play which started with the dawn
We also drifted off to dreamland with a yawn.
It’s our daughter that we all, now, look upon.
Still our friendship sails on and on.
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10. |
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Did you see us all the other day
Down by the sea like ducks at play
In a pond of water?
Not the River Jordan if it mattered.
The young and the old
alike had gathered.
And there was song. HOSANNA!
Splashing one and all and hoping
That we’re all saved
in just one soaking
Like with the Baptist, John. HOSANNA!
The ritual we believe salvation
As we await the New Revelation.
Did we wait too long? Oh. Oh.
Has He come and gone? Oh. Oh.
HOSANNA!
We found it all in the Big Book.
That’s why we wait.
That’s why we look
For signs He’s come again.
There were parables and prophecies
That could be taken literally.
Could we be wrong? HOSANNA!
With blinders off we all can see.
The Sun now shines.
Of clouds we’re free.
With voices raised in song. HOSANNA!
The ritual we believe salvation
As we await the New Revelation.
Did we wait too long? Oh. Oh.
Has He come and gone? Oh. Oh.
HOSANNA! HOSANNA!
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11. |
My Love is My Stronghold
02:57
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“O SON OF BEING!
My love is My stronghold;
He that entereth therein
is safe and secure,
and he that turneth away shall surely stray and perish.”
(Bahá’u’lláh, Hidden Words in Arabic #9)
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12. |
The Ocean is My Home
03:29
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The sun is my father with his smile.
The moon is the mother of this child.
The wind is the best friend
that I’ve known
But the ocean is my home.
The sun is my father.
He warms me with his smile.
The moon is my mother who reflects my thoughts when darkness has come upon her child.
The wind is my friend.
He helps me as we run together
across a sea of sand.
But then we fight as good friends do.
He throws sand back in my face when I’ve thrown it at him.
I try to run against
the direction he’s blowing
and he pushes me back, but then
We forgive when we both calm down
and then we’re friends again.
Oh, the ocean is my home.
I yield to its rushing current
and it takes me where it wishes in its foam.
It’s tiny mirrors dazzle me
with the images they flash
of the smile of my father
and the glow of my mother,
the moon.
And in the hush
when sleep I must
But I can’t ‘cause I feel alone
It summons
its waves in chorus
and closes my eyes with lullabies
In low and dulcet tones.
Oh, the ocean
is my home.
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13. |
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*“¡Elevad vuestros corazones más allá del presente y mirad con ojos de fé hacia el futuro! Hoy se esparce la semilla, el grano cae en la tierra, pero mirad...”
Con ojos de fe, Con ojos de fe. Mirad!
Alrededor de nosotros hay tanto dolor
Y muchos esperan al Consolador.
Pero ya salió el Sol
Sus rayos llegan a todos
Dándonos luz, consuelo y calor.
Con ojos de fe. Con ojos de fe. Mirad!
Las lágrimas caen y cubren la faz.
Los niños sin padres añoran la paz.
Promesas nos hacen reir.
Muy pocos van a cumplirlas.
Solamente Dios el Compasivo es capaz.
Con ojos de fe. Con ojos de fe. Mirad!
Pronto, pronto, pronto, pronto
**El orden actual será enrollado
Uno nuevo desplegado en su lugar.
El viejo está muriendo,
el nuevo surgiendo,
El mundo uniéndose
será un solo hogar.
Con ojos de fe.
Con ojos de fe.
Con ojos de fe.
Con ojos de fe. Mirad!
* words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
** paraphrased from the writings of Bahá’u’lláh
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Wiley Rinaldi Atlanta, Georgia
In his music, Wiley Rinaldi searches for truth, asks important questions, seeks hope and faith, evokes nostalgia, and quotes spiritual verses.
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