We met Bob and Margie Jones at church when we came to California in the late 1980’s. They lived in Fullerton and graciously invited our kids to use their swimming pool. Bob was retired by the time we met him but he had a fascinating career. He was a puppeteer. He created the kind of puppets that were controlled by strings above the puppet stage. They were called Marionettes. Bob directed plays and actually created and designed many of the puppets himself.
Eventually Bob was hired by Walt Disney in the 1930’s to create puppets for a variety of projects. Bob’s most famous creation was Pinocchio. He told me it was challenging to work with Walt Disney. Mr. Disney was very demanding and had specific ideas of what the characters and puppets should look like. Bob said it took a lot of work to shape and design the puppet that became the model for the movie. His family still has some of the original Pinocchio puppets.
After World War Two Bob left the entertainment industry and launched his own manufacturing company. After he retired Bob took the time to write up some of his memories of working with Walt Disney. One time he took me with him to drop off some articles at the Disney archives and he gave me a personal tour of their animation studios in Burbank.
Earthquakes were a new experience for us when we moved to California. We would try to guess how strong an earthquake was. Since Bob was an engineer he learned to calculate the strength of an earthquake by the movement of the water in his swimming pool. The stronger the quake – the stronger the waves in the pool. He said when the Whittier Narrows earthquake struck in 1987 (a year before we arrived) water was actually thrown out of the swimming pool and splashed on to the side of their house. He knew it was a very strong earthquake!
Bob was also a Christian. He shared with me that it took him a while to believe in Jesus. Engineers like to figure things out for themselves. They want measurable proof that can be calculated and understood. Believing in Jesus does include reliable evidence and eyewitness accounts. But it also requires faith. Jesus said to one of his disciples named Thomas, “You believe because you have seen me – blessed are those who have not seen me and yet believe in me” (John 20:29). You may not have an engineering background. And you may find it difficult to believe in someone you have never seen. Let me encourage you to examine the evidence yourself. Read about the life, death and resurrection of Jesus in the Bible. I hope you will come to the same conclusion that my friend Bob Jones did and put your faith in Jesus. He would be glad you did and I would too!
You can read more stories and articles by the author in his book Let Me Encourage You. The book includes a story for every day of the year – 365 articles and stories. You can order a copy of Mark’s book at markh@efreedb.org. The price is $20 plus postage.
Let Me Encourage You by Mark Hopper 
Good perspective!
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