*God’s Hand on the Anvil*
~ Julius Sturm ~
Pain’s furnace heat within me quivers,
God’s breath upon the flame does blow,
And all my heart in anguish shivers
And trembles at the fiery glow;
And yet I whisper, “As God’s will!”
And in the hottest fire hold still.
He comes and lays my heart, all heated;
On the hard anvil, minded so
Into His own fair shape to beat it
With His great hammer, blow on blow;
And yet I whisper, “As God will!”
And at His heaviest blows hold still.
He takes my softened heart and beats it;
The sparks fly off at every blow;
He turns it over and over and heats it,
And lets it cool, and makes it glow;
And yet I whisper, “As God will!”
And in His mighty hand hold still.
Why should I complain for the sorrow
Then only longer-lived would be;
The end may come, and will tomorrow,
When God has done His work in me;
So I say trusting, “As God will!”
And, trusting to the end, hold still.