Ponderings Pond was launched April 1, 2008, on the Internet through the services of Triond.com which often publishes the stories on Authspot.com

The idea came about due to the fact I would tell our sons "snake stories" at night before putting them to bed. The main character was a rascal named Jake who would often get himself into some difficult situations.

From those bedtime stories came the idea to make puppets for use in Sunday School, Christian Education and Child Evangelism.

Dorcas, my wife, made Jake and his friend Joe which are both black snakes. Soon came Clara, a couple of coppers (copperheads acting as law enforcement) and an additional black black snake to play various roles.

So why snakes? Aside from being easy to make, we know that the initial impression of a snake for most people is one that reminds them of the fall of Adam and Eve. However, Christ has dominion, which even affects mischievous critters like Jake and Joe. Black snakes were chosen because they are non-poisonous.

As time progressed, more puppets were added to the collection: a frog, giraffe, shark, duck, a bright blue creature, and others.

Many of these puppets were used in child evangelism outreaches in the 1990's in Cambridge, Maryland, as Cornerstone Assembly of God was established and developed. Due to various factors, including withdrawing the church from the Assemblies of God, the usage of the puppets declined.

Dorcas discovered Triond.com in March 2008 and told me about it. So I began to write numerous articles. As March neared its end, the thought occurred to me to use the puppets for stories and get them -- and the message of the life changing power of God -- on the Internet.

While in the 1980's and early 1970's I had considered a radio broadcast called "Snake Jake and the Sonshine Club, I felt God's Holy Spirit telling me that title will not do for the present ministry for a number of reasons. The stories should not focus upon Jake but upon the principles of God's Word. "Sonshine Club" is commonly used by others. So, after prayerful thought, "Ponderings Pond" came to my mind and felt that the title was so indicated by God.

The first story was published by Triond on April 1, the 25th birthday of our youngest son, Jon. Since I already had been teaching on Kingdom Education, soon came the idea to offer Ponderings Pond educational material on Kingdom Education (KE). However, KE, operated by someone else, is no longer online.

This educational material would be great for home and church, but it is not fully developed at this time.

Please view the list of all the stories, absolutely free to read. Your children will have fun reading these stories, and for parents that read to their children, they will enjoy reading these stories to them.

Please view the the user agreement which will open in a separate window (you may have to enable pop-ups). This agreement is already in printer-friendly format.

Please meet the cast of Ponderings Pond!

Questions and Answers About Ponderings Pond