Among his admirable character traits, Brigham Young possessed an optimism born of faith in Jesus Christ and His purposes.

"Our Christian religion," he told the Latter-day Saints on one occasion, "… incorporates every act of a person's life. We never should presume to anything unless we can say, 'Father, sanction this, and crown the same with success.' If the Latter-day Saints live so, the victory is ours" (Journal of Discourses 18:217).

President Young uttered those words to a congregation in Logan, Utah, just a little over a year before his death in 1877. They could constitute a fitting epitaph to a life spent in dedication to God, obedience to His law, loyalty to His prophet and service to His children.

Repeatedly, his faith was tried in the crucible of hardship and persecution, in the end to be crowned with success.

Speaking on another occasion, of his coming to Kirtland, Ohio, at the call of the Prophet Joseph Smith, he said: "If any man that ever did gather with the Saints was any poorer than I was, it was because he had nothing. … I had two children to take care of. … I was a widower. 'Brother Brigham had you any shoes?' No, not a shoe to my foot, except a pair of borrowed boots. I had no winter clothing except a homemade coat that I had had three or four years. 'Any pantaloons?' No. 'What did you do? Did you go without?' No, I borrowed a pair to wear till I could get another pair. I had traveled and preached and given away every dollar of my property … until I had nothing left to gather with; but Joseph said, 'Come up,' and I went up the best I could" (Journal of Discourses 11:295).

Of course, what sustained Brigham Young — and many noble men and women of like faith and dedication through the ages — is an abiding vision of the ultimate triumph of goodness and right, of the desire of a loving Heavenly Father to bless His children in ways that might not be immediately apparent but ultimately unfold with dramatic clarity.

In times of trouble, faithful followers of God can be heartened by an incident in the life of Elisha the prophet.

As recounted in 2 Kings 6:8-18, Syria was making war against Israel. By revelation, the prophet Elisha knew the military strategy of the Syrian army and accordingly advised the king of Israel in repelling the Syrian forces.

Told by one of his servants that the king of Israel was receiving his military intelligence from the prophet, the Syrian king sent his army to lay siege to the city and capture Elisha.

"And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas my master! How shall we do?

"And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.

"And Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw; and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha" (2 Kings 6:14-16).

As in ancient times and in the earlier days of the Restoration, we today have prophets who see things more clearly than we, who can give us the assurance, renewed from time to time, that so long as we are on the Lord's side, we have ample support to triumph over any opposition that may beset us.

When prophesying the deliverance of the kingdom of Judah from invading armies, Jahaziel the prophet assured King Jehoshaphat and his people, "Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's" (2 Chronicles 20:15). Later, the king admonished his people, "Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper" (verse 20).

What timely application those words have for us today! When struggling to support a family in a dismal economy, to rear them in righteousness in a wicked age; when endeavoring to fulfill a task or calling in the Church that seems daunting or beyond our capacity, if we know that it is in accordance with our Father's will, we can have the blessed assurance it is God's battle we are fighting. We can know that as we follow His words and the counsel of His anointed, we will prosper in the end.

As President Young taught in the twilight of his mortality, if we so live, the victory is ours.