But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s charge, because the Lord was with him. And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed.

Genesis 39: 21-23

When we last checked in on Joseph on Friday morning, I referred to a quote from Alistair Begg who defined Joseph’s life as one with a “God-centered focus.”

Over the weekend, I listened to two sermons on very different passages that each built on the idea above. The first pastor spoke of Abraham’s decision to hold nothing back from God when he was tested on Mount Moriah with his only son, Isaac. Abraham surrendered what mattered most and God counted that as righteousness.

The second pastor keyed in on the life of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter four. We read how Nebuchadnezzar quite literally lost his mind until “he lifted his eyes to heaven (Daniel 4:34).”

Both of these men learned a lesson from their experiences. Likewise, Joseph was tested each step of the way in his own life, but in spite of his current circumstances, Joseph lived a surrendered life and I think that is what is intended as a God-centered focus.

Like Joseph, I had expectations as to what life would look like, and even though it has turned out differently than I imagined, there is a lesson for me to learn in the lives of the men mentioned above. Will I surrender to God everything or will I hold something back?

Consider this quote from Elisabeth Elliot: