Family Stories (Sermon Blog)

Series Launch: This week we began a new Christmas series called “Christmas Stories.” Pastor Steve opened with the story behind Jesus’ family—one filled with beauty and brokenness, honor and scandal, joy and pain. Just like our own families, the family Jesus was born into had untold stories, complicated relationships, and messy history. And through Matthew 1, we learn that God doesn’t avoid messy stories—He steps into them.

Every Family Has a Story

Pastor Steve began by asking a simple but revealing question:
When someone in your family says, “I have an announcement to make,” what emotion rises first?

• Excitement?

• Anxiety?

• Dread?

• “Here we go again…”?

Most families have both joyful announcements (graduations, promotions, pregnancies) and heartbreaking ones (addiction relapses, job loss, bankruptcy). No family is perfect—and no story is without its painful chapters.

Matthew doesn’t hide the scandal surrounding Jesus’ birth. In fact, he preserves it—because God intended to redeem it, not erase it.

Joseph’s Shock: When the Story Takes a Turn

Joseph and Mary were in the betrothal period—a binding part of a Jewish marriage where the couple was considered “as good as married.” Their wedding was near. Their future looked settled.

Then Mary told Joseph:
“I’m pregnant.”

And Joseph knew he wasn’t the father.
In their culture, this wasn’t just disappointing—it was adultery, punishable by death. Joseph felt betrayal, shame, confusion, and fear about what people would think.

But God stepped in.

“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid… What is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” — Matthew 1:20

God reframed the story Joseph thought was ruined.

God Doesn’t Step Around Your Story—He Steps Into It

Pastor Steve reminded us that some of us feel embarrassed by the stories in our family. Maybe you wish you could:

• Edit a chapter

• Delete a moment

• Hide a secret

• Rewrite someone’s behavior

• Forget something ever happened

But God is not embarrassed by your story.
He does not walk around your pain—He walks into it.

Jesus’ own genealogy includes:

• Murderers

• Adulterers

• Prostitutes

• Liars

• Deceivers

• Abusers

• Broken kings and broken families

Jesus doesn’t come from a perfect family—He comes from a redeemed one.

And He can redeem yours too.

How Do I Handle the Untold Stories in My Family?

Pastor Steve offered three spiritual practices that Joseph models beautifully:

1. Courage: Move Forward Despite Fear

Joseph’s obedience would cost him:

• His reputation

• His image

• His comfort

• His standing in the community

Yet Joseph took Mary as his wife anyway.
Sometimes obedience doesn’t silence the whispers—but it aligns your life with God’s will.

Courage means refusing to let fear of people keep you from following God.

2. Obedience: Do the Next Right Thing

Joseph obeyed the angel’s command to name the child Jesus—even though naming rights traditionally belonged to the father.

Obedience often looks like:

• Doing what God asks when it feels costly

• Making choices others don’t understand

• Trusting God more than our image management

Sometimes obedience is quiet, unseen, and misunderstood—but it is always honored by God.

3. Integrity: Walk in Truth and Protect What Matters

In real family life, integrity might look like:

• Honest confession instead of covering up

• Seeking help when patterns won’t break

• Setting boundaries with unhealthy relationships

• Offering forgiveness even when it feels undeserved

• Breaking generational patterns instead of repeating them

These are hard steps—but necessary ones. God often uses these moments to rewrite what has been broken.

Let Jesus Redefine Your Family Story

The angel told Joseph:

“You are to name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Our deepest family problems aren’t ultimately circumstantial—they’re rooted in sin, pain, and the wounds that follow.
Our deepest hope is not a perfect family—but a perfect Savior.

Jesus redeems what feels irredeemable.
He heals what feels too deep to touch.
He carries what feels too heavy to explain.

No part of your family story is beyond His reach.

A Christmas Invitation

Pastor Steve closed with this question:
What would it look like to invite Emmanuel—God with us—into your family story this Christmas?

Maybe the next step is:

• Asking for forgiveness

• Extending forgiveness

• Having the conversation you’ve been avoiding

• Setting healthy boundaries

• Breaking a harmful pattern

• Asking God to heal what has felt unhealable

Christmas is about new birth and new beginnings.
A new beginning for your family can start today.

This Sunday, Pastor Steve will continue our series with Part 2 of Christmas Stories.
Join us as we keep discovering how Jesus steps into real-life stories with hope, healing, and redemption.