It is all too easy for us to say, "That's his problem" or "That's her issue." The truth is that for the Christian, the cares and concerns of one become community property. While response to problems does not call for us to literally take on the suffering of others, we are to encounter the suffering of others through constant prayer. We give a voice to the voiceless and hope to the hopeless when we remember them in our prayers. Prayer is that
sacred opportunity to invite God to enter into the sanctuary of our lives and those of others. We pray for one another not because it's our Christian duty or obligation, but because as Christians we truly believe that God responds to prayers.

--From the sermon "Suffering Knows No Bounds"
by The Rev. Allen F. Robinson

Read the sermon in its entirety.