Using Puppets to Minister to Children

by John James

Puppets are a big part of many children’s ministries around the world because the can be so effective at entertaining and educating children. Puppets can be a big help to ministry workers that are facing significant challenges in their efforts to minister to kids.

If you are uncertain about using puppets in your ministry or if you are wondering how they can really benefit you and the children, here is a look at some reasons why you should consider using puppets in your ministry.

Entertainment

While ministering to the children and teaching them is much more important than having fun, teaching them in a way that allows them to have fun will be a tremendous help in terms of creating an effective ministry.

Children’s ministry leaders appreciate the use of puppets because they make it more effective to convey a message to a child, but kids pay more attention to the fact that they are having fun during a puppet presentation. They will still be learning, but their emphasis is usually on the entertainment. If you can create a fun and educational environment the kids will respond accordingly.

Educational

Not only are puppets fun for the kids, but they are also an excellent way to teach and to communicate with the children. Kids tend to pick up the messages that are presented through puppet presentations at least as effectively, if not more so, than they would in another format.

Lasting

If you minister to children you are not only concerned with teaching and educating them, but you also want those lessons to last and to be remembered by them in the future as they grow. Puppets often create lasting impressions.

Teamwork and Involvement

Puppet ministry requires the involvement of a number of people. This is sometimes a challenge to get the necessary volunteers, but typically the ministry will touch the workers just as much as it will the children.

Since many volunteers will be needed for the puppet ministry, it’s common for churches to encourage their teens to get involved in this way.

Versatile

Puppets can be used in so many different ways and so many different places within a children’s ministry. This is one of the great things about puppets is that there is basically no limitation to how and when they can be used.

Can be Low Cost

Most churches and ministries are working with very limited budgets, but puppet ministries do not need to require a lot of financial resources. Puppets can be made from just about anything that is available around the house, and you can even find free scripts online that you can use in your own ministry.

Of course, you can always spend the money on puppets, a stage and scripts if it is available, but this is not a requirement to get a puppet ministry off the ground.

You Can Easily Find Scripts

If you’re interested in starting a puppet ministry, don’t let the lack of a desire to write scripts stand in your way. There are plenty of great resources for low cost or even free scripts available online.

CCES has produced a book of 15 quality puppet scripts that can be purchased and downloaded online. There are also some free scripts that are available on the site as well -(http://www.ccesonline.com/puppetscript.htm) Puppet skits from CCES

Ready to start or expand your puppet ministry? Get some free (http://www.ccesonline.com/puppetscript.htm) Christian skits for children from (http://www.ccesonline.com) Christian counseling.

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