You say you're down and out   And need some help to get you through each day   Well, here's a thought or two   I've used and like to pass them on your way   I found them lying there   The answers that you say you're looking for   Make what you will of them   And you can change the way it was before      You got to make it by yourself   You know you got to make it by yourself   I'll be your friend and I'll lend a helping hand   But you got to try and help yourself before I can      I hear you talk of all the happiness   And emptiness you've known   Well, let me reassure you   Never were you really all alone   They say in quiet desperation many people cannot see   They cannot see the simple truth   That's not the way it has to be      You got to find it for yourself   God helps the man who helps himself, amen   I am your friend and I'll lend a helping hand   But you gotta try and help yourself before I can      We got to help each other (each other)   You got to help your brother when you can   When you can         Now don't you think that I was preachin'   I'm just reachin' out for you   'Cause that's the only way   That I know how to get the message through   Then you in turn and got to learn and teach it   To somebody who   Who felt the happiness and emptiness the same as you