In Other People's Shoes

I bring my prayers to you:
     for those who suffer pain;
     for those whose minds are disturbed;
     for brilliant people who waste their abilities;
     for those with great potential
          but who lack the opportunity to realize it;
     for those whose dreams have shattered;
     for those who live behind bars;
     for those who have been maimed by violence;
     for those who have been disgraced and wounded
          by other people's wrong doing;
     for those who have lost a loved one;
     for those who are suffering from incurable diseases;
     for those who face death,
          especially those who face it without you.

Help me, Father, to make myself available
to those who need help,
that in practical and spiritual ways
I may convey your love to them.