FORGET not, on my blessing, thrice a-day,
Thy bounden sacrifice of praise to bring,
And on thy bended knees devoutly pray
Before thy God, thy Saviour, and thy King.

Before thy room thou quittest, with the light -
Before thou dinest, at the noon of day -
Before thou suppest, at th' approach of night -
On these three times, do not neglect to pray.

Lift up thy hands to pray for thy success,
Ere they are put to any use beside,
And beg of God thy ev'ry work to bless,
Before thou hast thyself to work apply'd.

Thou may'st some short ejaculation say,
Even when, on thy task, thou'rt most intent,
And shou'dst with never-ceasing ardor pray ;
Though God has given thee thy heart's content.

Though thou with heavy labour art oppress'd,
And greatly hurry'd on a market-day -
Yet even then, it is by all confess'd,
'Twill do thee much more good, than harm, to pray.

Though David did in martial skill excel,
And troubles more than any mortal bore -
Yet, seven times a-day, he always fell
Upon his knees, the Godhead to adore.

Whilst with the kings of Canaan war he wag'd,
Joshua pray'd --- yet fought with all his might ;
His heart was in devotion then engag'd,
E'en whilst his hands were busy in the fight.

Their pray'rs ne'er stopp'd whatever they began,
Nor put their undertaking to a stand;
But rather forwarded each happy plan,
And sanctify'd whate'er they took in hand.

Accustom thou thy self to pray with zeal,
In ev'ry work thou dost - and thou shalt see
That pray'r can do more than tongue can tell,
And be a happy furtherance to thee.

The Husbandman and Hind may full as well,
E'en whilst at plough, to their Creator pray,
As to their cattle some dull jargon tell,
Or silly singsong, all the live-long day.

E'en Travellers may Psalms devoutly sing,
Or pray in spirit, as they ride, or walk,
As well as they may make the welkin ring
With their loose ballads, or their noisy talk.

Nay, Shoe-makers and Tailors may enjoy
Some time to pray, whilst they their trades pursue:
For whilst their hands they at their craft employ,
Their minds may be employ'd in prayer too.

Old women, whilst they turn the spinning wheel,
May each perform her task without delay,
And maidens twirl about the rattling reel,
And yet find time enough besides to pray.

Though thou shou'dst be, with Moses on the hill -
Or else, with Isaac, walking o'er thy ground -
Or in the temple with St. John - yet still,
Where-e'er thou art, to pray thou'rt always bound.

Before thou goest from thy house, entreat
Thy gracious God, to give thee good success,
And all thy labours, whether small or great,
With his accustom'd providence to bless.

'Tis God, that makes our undertakings speed,
'Tis God, that ev'ry blessing to us gives,
When he is worshipp'd, all our works succeed,
But when neglected, then a curse arrives.

His spirit beg, to guide thee on thy way,
His grace too beg, to aid each faint effort,
His blessing beg, on all thou dost essay,
And he himself will be thy strong support.

Let ev'ry act with Jesus be begun -
His help implore, to bring it to an end -
To him ascribe the glory, when 'tis done:
So shall success on ev'ry act attend.

As God made Joseph's ev'ry work succeed,
And all that faithful Daniel did of yore;
So will he forward, for thee, ev'ry deed,
If thou sincerely wilt his name adore.

For if thou dost not pray aright to God,
Like Jonah, thou a baseless booth shalt make -
Or else, like Peter, thou shalt spread abroad
Thy nets - and yet a single fish not take.

Thou, night and day, in trouble and in pain
Shalt fret and fume, and like a Miser moil -
Yet all thy labour shall be quite in vain,
And thou nought better, after all thy toil.

In vain it is, to rise up with the light,
In vain it is, to eat the bread of care,
In vain, to watch the tedious winter-night,
If we without God's holy blessing are.

In vain it is new palaces to raise,
In vain it is, to garrison the fort,
In vain it is, to toil throughout our days,
If God does not our weak attempts support.

Lest all thy labours, then, shou'd fruitless prove,
Pray thou with fervor, if thou wou'dst succeed -
Pray unto God to bless thee from above:
So shall he fully prosper ev'ry deed.