Smiles turned to laughter as Doug Mickan, associate pastor of worship and music at Faith Baptist Church in Festus, introduced his friends. Mickan was at Parkway Baptist Church in St. Louis for a ministry event. His friends live in a trunk and depend on him for a voice.
“I have always been interested in puppets,” Mickan said, “and for my 16th birthday, my parents paid for a class at a local community college in ventriloquism.”
“It was about a year before I felt comfortable sharing,” Mickan continued. “My first performance was at my aunt’s church and then God started opening doors.”
Puppets and ministry
Mickan uses his puppets for ministry. Each one tells a Bible story or a concept from the Bible. At Parkway, Tommy was the first to join Mickan on the platform to have a discussion on salt and light. Although Tommy looks young, he has been with Mickan for 32 years.
“It is important for us to be salt and light in the world,” Mickan said.
After the discussion, Tommy and Mickan sang a lively song about shaking out Jesus’ love.
“God has been using this ministry through many open doors,” Mickan said. “I’ve been doing corporate events as well as public schools and libraries,” Mickan continued. “With those venues, I must adjust the program because I can’t share the gospel directly. However, when I’m doing a public school, I try to line up a church for the evening, so that I can invite the children and their families back to the church where I can share the gospel.”
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Vicki Stamps and originally published by the Missouri Pathway.
