The military fighting forces prepare for war by continually training, learning from defeats, and being ready. They win because the battles they fight do not turn on chance or on the need for remarkable. Instead, success comes at the end of well-conceived and executed campaigns designed to integrate the elements of national power into a strategic victory. Success in warfare depends on much more than deeds of heroic valor. Success requires the ability to use all the tools available in a combined effort to display power behind a singular purpose.

The greatest military successes have depended on careful, long-range planning, the organization of assets and the commitment to overwhelming the enemy, not on heroism and chance. 

So it is with you. Your victory comes through tactics, understanding the enemy, and operational and strategic planning. Victory comes through your prayer and your praise.

The month of December deals with prayer and praise. God has instructed you to pray. Not only for you to tell Him what you want; you also pray because He wants to tell you what He wants. You will find that the power of prayer is not contingent on the words you say, the tears you cry, or how animated you are. Rather, the power lives in God, The One you are praying to. God listens for prayers, all prayers. He hears the prayers of the sinner who wants to be saved and He saves him/her. God says yes to prayers that agree with His will and handles those that are not, in a way that He deems best. He hears the prayers of His children, and He inhabits them. You offer praise to God for the things He has done. Like prayer, praise focuses on you and empowers you. Praise reminds you of His tactics, confounds the enemy, and equips you for continued battle. With instructions and strategies given by God, you can be effective in war when you continually pray and praise.