A promotion in my job meant I would once again have weekends free.   I could once again attend Sunday morning worship with my family.   I was eager to find my place in the church family. My early searches for involvement landed me  a position on the church publicity committee and a part in several dramas.   I didn't really enjoy the publicity committee job and while I enjoyed church dramas, I still didn't feel like I was serving the Lord.

I prayed and it was obviously an answer to that led to the puppet ministry. An associate pastor at that time had asked    if I would be interested in doing something with puppets at the church.    Puppets! "Okay," I thought. I've had some experience with small hand puppets.    I was a big fan of Sesame Street, having worked at a Public Broadcasting Station while in college.   The Muppets were very popular     on television at the time.    I didn't mind doing something    with puppets.     I had no idea that puppets could be a ministry, let alone my ministry for some twenty four years now.  It's a ministry I have shared with my entire family and     a few hundred youth and adults over the years.

The first challenge was the puppet part.   The only puppets I had at home were some small Sesame Street characters that didn't seem to fit the church scene.    I ran into some friends from college that had a puppet performing company.     As I waited to greet them after a performance, I noticed they were trying to explain how to make the puppets to a woman.  "Wow, a chance to find out how they make puppets," I thought.    As I looked on the friend was explaining an algebraic equation used to develop the pattern for the puppet's head.     I found out the women lived on the same side of town as me and was glad to share her notes if I understand them.    She had a puppet ministry at her church and was able to point me in the direction of a puppet training workshop and summer conference for puppet ministries.

I finally figured out how to make the puppet head.   It was a round ball of foam with a hinged mouth.    I promptly handed the round ball to my wife to cover with fabric.       Her first reaction was, "Right, you want me to cover this round ball with fabric."     She didn't own a sewing machine or didn't even know how to use one.      The first puppets had the puppet head but the body was that of a stuffed doll all done by hand.     Needless to say they were very heavy and difficult to operate.    As time went on my wife and I gradually worked through our mistakes and began building lightweight, easy to manipulate puppet characters. This took countless hours, prayers, and God's helping hand that led us to making the puppets we make today.

Hundreds of puppets later, hundreds more puppet performances, my wife and I are still designing, creating, and building puppets for the ministry.   We have been fortunate to work with puppet ministries and missionaries across the United States and around the World.

The ministry continues to grow.   It has provided fertile ground for building personal faith, reaching others with the Good News of Jesus Christ, and changing lives along the way.   In reaching and teaching others I have learned much.     I have been able to help others prepare for ministry using this unique Gospel Art form.   Through prayer, I continue to seek what the Lord has in mind for me next.