WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
AUGUST 10, 2026
TOPIC: THANK GOD FOR OTHERS
BY T. O. BANSO
“First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world” (Romans 1:8 New King James Version).
Gratitude is one of the best attitudes a child of God should cultivate, especially when expressed to God. Thanking God for what He has done for you and even thanking Him in advance for what He will do is a great habit to cultivate. But thanking God for others is equally an important habit to develop.
The apostle Paul says in the last part of 1 Timothy 2:1 that giving thanks should be made for all people. We should make supplications, prayers, and intercessions for all people, but we should also give thanks for them. God loves all people. He loves the world and wants everyone to be saved (John 3:16; 1 Timothy 2:4).
You may be doing very well in thanking God for what He has done for you and your family, but how often do you thank God for others, especially fellow Christians and others in your life? You may not be guilty of not praying for others. In other words, you’re not selfish and make requests to God for others. This is commendable. But do you thank God for them? You should pray for other Christians and others, but you should also thank God for them.
There are many reasons you can give thanks to God for others. Thanksgiving can focus on their spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional well-being. It can be a response of gratitude for answered prayers, shared testimonies, God’s mercy in their lives, or the good things you have observed in them.
Paul shows this example in his writings. Not only did he pray for other Christians, but he also thanked God for them, and sometimes mentioned what he thanked God for. We should learn from him and thank God for others, especially believers. Offering thanks to God for others must not be limited to our family members.
In Romans 1:8, Paul thanked God for the Roman Christians because their faith was being talked about all over the world. “First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world” (Romans 1:8 New King James Version). Paul said God, whom he served with his spirit in the gospel of His Son, was his witness that without ceasing he made mention of them always in his prayers, requesting that God would allow him to travel to see them at last (verses 9-10). However, before he made his request to God, he thanked Him for the Christians in Rome. Thank God for fellow believers; thank God for the church.
Paul also thanked God for the Corinthian Christians for the grace of God that was given to them by Christ Jesus. But Paul didn’t only do this; he always did it. It was habitual. “I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus” (1 Corinthians 1:4 New King James Version). Did you notice what he thanked God for in their lives? He thanked God for His grace given to them by Jesus Christ. This is something some people may not consider important to thank God for in their own lives, let alone in the lives of other believers. But the grace of God is extremely important.
Ephesians 2:8-9 says by grace we have been saved through faith, and that not of ourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Talking about what grace did for him, Paul says, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10 New King James Version).
What did Paul thank God for about grace for the Corinthians, or what did grace do in their lives for which Paul thanked God? Paul said, “I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:4-8 New King James Version). How often do you thank God for His grace in your life or in the lives of other Christians?
In Ephesians 1, Paul thanked God ceaselessly for the Ephesians. He said, “Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers” (verses 15-16 New King James Version). Paul thanked God for them ceaselessly and made requests to God in prayer for them. Verses 17-22 give the details of this prayer. What are the positives you have noted in the spiritual lives of other Christians that you should thank God for? Don’t be envious of them; thank God for them.
Paul wrote to the Philippians, “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:3-6 New King James Version). Let your prayer for other Christians include thanksgiving to God.
Furthermore, Paul included the Thessalonian Christians in his thanksgiving as he prayed for them. “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father” (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 New King James Version).
In another letter to the Thessalonians, Paul emphasised his thanksgiving to God. He said, “We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other” (2 Thessalonians 1:3 New King James Version). Note the expression “We are bound to thank God always for you.” In other words, Paul was obligated to thank God for the Thessalonians.
He used the same phrase, “we are bound to” in 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14, saying, “But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (New King James Version). Here again, Paul gave thanks to God for the Thessalonian church.
Don’t thank God for yourself and your family alone; thank God for others also, especially Christians. Don’t just give thanks to God for them; give thanks always. See yourself as duty-bound. Tell God what you are thanking Him for in others’ lives. Be specific. When you do this, your love for them is bound to increase.
TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you must give your heart to Jesus now. Please take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner and you cannot save yourself, and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life—your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your heart. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching, and Bible-practising church. There, they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner, and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me, and God raised Him on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I invite Jesus into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You must join a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching, and Bible-practising church where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like a palm tree and grow like a cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Father, thank You for what You are doing in Your church all over the world. Thank You for all Your children, including Your servants, whom You are using to spread the Gospel. Holy Spirit, help me to be faithful in thanking You for others, especially other Christians. Grant me the grace to always see the positives I should thank God for in others’ lives. Let me not be envious of others but thank God for them in Jesus’ name.
(For over 900 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
BE OUR FINANCIAL PARTNER
Account Name: Cedar Ministry International
Bank: United Bank for Africa
Account Number: 1027304911 (Naira)
Account Number: 3004481420 (USD)
Swift Code: UNAFNGLA
