Flags flown over court houses mean very little.
Star spangled banners wave helplessly in the wind.
God's blessings don't stretch from sea to shining sea.
The empire is falling.
A city on a shining hill has been beaten back.
And one thing is for sure, apathy won't rebuild here.
Citizens of rich and poor stripes concerned only with what they can get from her bounty, won't restore former glory.
Only action can do that.
Only great Americans can do that.

Blissfully unaware of the world.
Ignorant to events beyond our shore.
Mired in the problems of our lives.
Uncurious about the pain of our fellow man.
Fearful of those who don't look like us.
Just American.

No second language.
No tolerance for the different.
No excuse for entitlement.
No apology for the pain.
No need to grow.
Just American.

Just God.
Just family.
Just family friends.
Just my job.
Just American.

Just a world without justice.
Just American.

I used to feel your pride.
I felt like your prodigal son.
Now, I am unsure if I can return home.
My sins are unknown to me.
Did I fail you?
Do I mock you with my presence?
Did I commit the greatest sin of all and disappoint?

The silence hangs over me like a shadow.
Words unsaid box my mind like a prizefighter.
Phone calls never made compel me to fill the void.
Did I go too far?
Is the distance to blame?
Did I commit the greatest sin of all and disappoint?

Now, I lie in wait.
Wondering if I should be the bigger man and make the first move.
You may be oblivious to the pain.
Do you miss my voice?
Do you long for my stories?
Did I commit the greatest sin of all and disappoint?

Here are the expectations.
You all won't be held accountable to them.
Just you.
Because the rules of the game will changed midway.
Sorry, just the nature of the beast.

You will fail and so will they.
We will tell you, "we aren't keeping score."
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Oh, you started from behind anyways.
Good luck catching up.

Head down, nose to the grindstone, you'll plow on.
Goal, success. Goal, success. Goal, success.
Little praise. Fewer questions.
You can measure their interest.
It doesn't exist.

You are a disappointed son.
You've worked so hard to be anything less than disappointing.
Then you realize who you did this for.
It was never meant for them.
Cause they wouldn't understand.

On every street corner is an opportunity to fall through the gutter.
In the heart of the "City of God," human beings are sold of their innocence.
They are objects not subjects.
And we sit idly by and chalk it up to temptation; a burden for someone else to shoulder.

No one comes to the rescue.
God doesn't come down from his mount.
He isn't offering his feet for ceremonial washings.
Forgiveness falls with the weight of an old wooden cross.
And we sit idly by and chalk it up to temptation; a burden for someone else to shoulder.

On a nightly basis, the system fails.
No empathy or sympathy on display for the girls of Rio.
Those who care must rise up and offer to rescue one.
The power to change the world is not ours.
The power to change someone's world is.
We can start by putting a shoulder into the temptation.

The waves are beating against the nearest of shores.
Sand protects me from their pull.
The honking of horns is quiet now.
Hills, mountains and the mist block and surround.
Behind us all is Jesus over my shoulder.

American modesty tossed aside.
The people here were never taught to hate their bodies.
They were taught something simple; love.
Something most magazines and beauty models fail to do.
This lesson persists with Jesus over my shoulder.

The rhythm of this city is not unique.
It could be the metropolises of Europe, Asia or America.
The sheer beauty is all its own.
No comparisons exist on planet Earth.
Paradise with Jesus over my shoulder.

This place is not without obvious faults.
The poor are hidden from view with homes built in clusters.
They crowd the sides of every hill.
You cannot help to wonder if they are forgotten.
Either by the people or Jesus over my shoulder.

I set my sights on Providence.
It was time to escape my American dream.
My country was only recognizable, because of its long standing apathy and cynicism.
X-City. X-Country. You should come too.

I set my sights on Providence.
Look for a new place to welcome me home.
Changing faces, offer glimpses of hope.
X-City. X-Country. You should come too.

I set my sights on Providence.
Because I need to be delivered.
Planting my feet on solid ground uncompromised by the pull of greed.
X-City. X-Country. You should come too.

I set my sights on Providence.
Because I desire to be saved.
I am close to being corrupted.
X-City. X-Country. You should come too.