Silicon Valley Healing Rooms 
The Sacrifice of Thanksgiving
“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.”
– Psalm 107:1
Thanksgiving holiday festivities have arrived. Grocery stores are selling turkeys, stuffing mixes, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin pies. Under the trees, fallen leaves gather in mounds of red, gold, and brown piles. Inside the decorations resemble the autumnal colors outside. Travel plans to pull families together from the corners of the world get checked and rechecked.
At the core of the holiday is the concept of thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a Biblical principle. It represents more than a simple “Thank you” for a gift or deed. Thanksgiving honors a God who is able to deliver us when it seems humanly impossible. In Old Testament terms, it was usually reserved for a physical enemy in times of combat. But today, we know asking God to deliver us also encompasses the bondages of disease, addiction, bad habits, guilt, patterns of abuse, spiritual battles, curses, fears, and unforgiveness.
It can feel like a sacrifice of thanksgiving when we thank God before we experience the desired result. This is when we lean on the truths that God is good, and his mercy endures forever. Even if it doesn’t seem like it while we’re in the middle of a trial. It’s a sacrifice when we choose to thank God before we understand why we’re going through a difficult season. Sometimes time provides a broader perspective. Sometimes new data points offer explanation. In these beforehand times, the Psalms writers fell back on what God had done for the Israelites in the past. “They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses” (Psalm 107:4-6). This is our hope again, today, now.
Psalm 107 goes on to outline positive things we can do as we make the choice to stay in the stream of thankfulness:
- Declare His works – with rejoicing! (v. 22). That means joyful singing. This happens when we go to church and sing worship songs (even when we don’t feel like it). Or when we keep our radio dial on a worship station, listening, even if we’re not feeling it.
- Being thankful for our circumstances, even if we don’t necessarily like them. Right before a job change, it’s easy to not like the current employer in order to psychologically align with the new employment opportunity. Thankfulness for the current situation while we wait for things to change accelerates the change.
- Give thanks for His goodness. God is always good, all the time. Even when our lives are in a mess. It is His goodness that we are really calling on to get us into a better situation. Our confident faith comes from believing that He has a good future for us and hope. (See Jer 29:11).
- We give thanks for His wonderful works to the children of men! (Psalm 107:15). When we stop to consider the amazing world we live in (the physics and design of earth) as well as the amazing design of the human body. Selah. (which means to “pause and think about this for awhile.”) This usually revives our wonderous thanksgiving to God for His creation.
- “Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy.” (Psalm 107:2). Whenever Jesus healed someone, they shouted the news. They told the whole town and region. This is what happens when there is something good that happens. It helps to remember what God has done for others at all times. It gives us faith while we wait for our breakthroughs. It is also a reminder to share the good things God is doing. Let the redeemed say so.
- Praise God for what He has done already. Then ask Him to do it again. “God delivered them out of their distresses…God satisfies the hungry soul…He brought them out of darkness..He broke their chains in pieces…He healed them…He calms the storm…He blesses them. (Psalm 107:6, 9, 13, 14, 20, 29, and 38). Fact, fact, fact. Thank you Lord. We praise you! Do it again Lord!
God Answers Prayer
Since our last Healing Rooms Open Hours:
A woman’s stress went from a 7 to a 3. She left feeling encouraged, and determined to remain focused on God.
One woman shared that their new home closed successfully. Moves require a lot of pieces to fall into place, all in the right order. This home sale was complicated, and it all needed to happen before they could close (and not lose) the new home sale. It wasn’t a smooth ride. But with prayer, it all came together. Great rejoicing.
One woman came and asked God for healing. The team asked her to take a few minutes to bless God first before they prayed. It was a new and surprise step for her. It goes back to the old Sunday School acronym of ACTS for prayer. ACTS stands for saying a sentence of Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, before saying the last sentence of Supplication.
One woman came with a request for relationship improvement within the family. Her stress went from a 4 to 0. She left with great joy and inspired by the prayer. She left with more confidence in God to answer the prayer, and the freedom to not “worry” until there’s tangible change.
The teams prayed for anxiety, marriages, dental matters, heart healing, strength to take action, wisdom, childhood trauma, cancer, collapsed lung, diabetes, fibromyalgia, God’s peace and strength, relief from fear and worry, high blood pressure, AFIB symptoms, rapid heartbeat, perseverance and endurance, life direction, whether to move or not, relationship with adult children, legal court cases, faith renewal, breakthrough in circumstances, counteracting witchcraft, workplace challenges, a new place to live, coping with the loss of a loved one, caring for a loved one, financial breakthrough, sciatica, lung cancer, sleep disorders, and trauma from an accident several years ago.
Scheduling An Appointment
Together, Silicon Valley Healing Rooms Prayer Ministers are ready to take your prayer requests to God in prayer. They also seek God’s word for you in advance of the appointment.
We are now taking signups for prayer appointments for Tuesday Nov 19, 2024
To sign up for an appointment, there are TWO STEPS:
1. Let us know your TOP THREE APPOINTMENT TIME PREFERENCES, in order of priority.
We will coordinate the teams and send the zoom information on Monday for the appointment on Tuesday.
2. Share a phone number so we can TEXT you with scheduling changes.
In the event that we are not able to offer you the time frames you desire, you may share a phone number with us to text you if an opening should arise when someone needs to cancel an appointment. This happens from time to time, and we are able to text you to see if you are available to join an available prayer team. All information is confidential to the ministry and is not used for solicitation. This step is optional.
You are welcome to sign up for prayer appointments at the following times listed below:
| Morning Times: | 11:10 to 11:40 am |
| 11:55 to 12:25 pm | |
| 12:40 to 1:10 pm | |
| Evening Times: | 7:10 to 7:40 pm |
| 7:55 to 8:25 pm | |
| 8:40 to 9:10 pm |
It is our greatest joy to join you in prayer and pray for whatever you want to bring before God.
We pray, believing, knowing, and confident that God answers prayer.
If you don’t need prayer right now, you are welcome to forward this to others you know that might want people to pray with them.
***We love to hear how God has answered prayer. Please share what God has done in your life as a result of prayer. You can reply to this email, or share it in your appointment, or write a comment on our web site.
The spiritual winds are blowing strength, life, and peace into us,
Stephanie Shoquist, Donna Maranon, Jim Clow
Directors, Silicon Valley Healing Rooms Team
Future Open Hours Online: November 19, December 3 & 17
CONTRIBUTIONS WELCOME
You can contribute to Silicon Valley Healing Rooms online or by cash or check. Learn more by visiting the website www.SiliconValleyHealingRooms.com