A Model for Christian Puppet Ministries
Puppets capture the attention of children. Regardless of what you are doing with the puppet, kids will watch, learn, and imitate. For this reason, it is important to do the right thing with puppets.
There’s an unwritten law of magnetism between puppets and children”an automatic friendship. Although children are quick to turn off adults who are trying to correct and instruct them, they eagerly open their ears and their hearts to these animated friends.
When a puppet is sad, children are sad. When the puppet is joyful, they are joyful. When he is silly and boisterous, they become that way too. The young audience becomes so deeply intrigued with the character that he becomes a model to follow.
If children watch puppets that speak with sarcastic tones and use rude name-calling such as “stupid” and “dummy,” you can be sure the youngsters will imitate that. Avoid doing things with puppets that you don’t want the children to repeat. It may be funny to watch one puppet swat another, but it won’t be so funny when Andrew and Abby do the same thing. Don’t allow hitting and other rough action among puppets unless it’s in the script for a purpose and is later corrected. Not only is this behavior a bad example for children, but it is also extremely hard on your puppets!
To have a positive impact through the puppet ministry, use them to behave properly in a respectful and courteous manner. You should use words and vocabulary that is at the appropriate level for the children. Remember that acceptable grammar, language and behavior can be different with different audiences.
Not only will children imitate a puppet’s behavior but they will also respond easily to whatever it asks them to do. For this reason, it is best not to use puppets to give an invitation to salvation or Christian commitment. At such times, the children’s response needs to be prompted by the Holy Spirit, not a puppet.
With all these guidelines regarding proper behavior, it would be easy to allow puppets to become cold, stiff, and unrealistic. To avoid this, take time to watch children playing at a park, a playground, a school or at home. See how natural they are. Let your puppets imitate them! Be natural and relaxed, but stay within the boundaries of good conduct.
Children seem to learn more quickly from puppets than just about any other medium. Let’s be faithful in using these tools carefully to bring about Christ -pleasing behavior from our listeners. Lord, using puppets is a great thrill but an even greater responsibility. Help me use them in a way that produces a good model for children to follow”one that honors You.
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