The Passionate Sword

Temper my spirit, oh Lord, 
Burn out its alloy, 
And make it a pliant steel for thy wielding, 
Not a clumsy toy, 
A blunt, iron thing in my hands 
That blunder and destroy. 

Temper my spirit, oh Lord, 
Keep it long in the fire; 
Make it one with the flame. Let it share 
That up-reaching desire. 

Grasp it thyself, oh my God; 
Swing it straighter and higher!

Jean Starr Untermeyer (1886-1970)