Puppets: Bein' Coooool

 Bein’ Cooooool

Mooster: Good evening everyone! Did you enjoy your Christmas break? Me too! It was fun to have off of school for a while. Now it’s back to the books, huh? Oh well…it’s a good thing to get an education and be learning. Hey have you seen Moe? I think he’s late tonight. Can you help me call for him?

Moe! Moe!!

Moe: Yo dog. Chill. I’m in the crib.  

Mooster: Uh…what? I’m a moose, not a dog. What crib? What are you talking about? And where did you get those sunglasses? Why are you wearing them inside?

Moe: Mooster, Mooster, Mooster. Oh man, brother, you got a lot to learn, boy.

Mooster: I’m pretty sure you’re the one needing the learning. Your grammar is getting pretty bad.

Moe: It’s all good. These “sunglasses” as you called them are my shades, man. Cost me $175 dolla! They’re way cool.  Just like me! You need to get with the program, Moosie-baby, and get on the cooool side of the jungle.

Mooster: Moe, what is up with you? Why are you all of a sudden trying to be “cool”?

Moe: Cool is where it’s at, Mooster! Everyone at school who’s cool is wearing shades like these. I’m planning on going shopping and buying some of those pants that are way too big, too. They’re cool, too!

Mooster: Oh yeah…losing your britches as you walk down the hall sounds really “cool” Moe.

  

Moe: You just don’t get it. I want to be cool. I want to fit in. All the cool kids in my neighborhood wear shades like this.  And way big britches.

Mooster: What else do the cool kids do, Moe?

Moe: Well…some of it you probably wouldn’t agree with.

Mooster: Like what?

Moe: Well, some of the kids hang out at the mall a lot. Unsupervised. I’m going to ask my mom if I can go out with some of the cool kids next week and just hang at the mall for 5 or 6 hours.

Mooster: That sounds boring. You don’t have any money to buy anything, so you’re just gonna wander around from store to store?

Moe: Well I think it will be fun. Sometimes they even skip classes to go!

Mooster: Oh this gets better all the time. So you think it’s cool to skip school?

Moe: Only if the cool kids do it.

Mooster: So something is only fun if they do it? I see. Hey, didn’t one of the kids in that group get caught shoplifting last week?

Moe: Well, yeah, but I’m not going to do that.

Mooster: And didn’t another one get caught smoking?

Moe: Yeah, but I don’t want to smoke, Mooster. That’s a yucky habit!

Mooster: And didn’t a couple of them get kicked out of school for being a discipline problem?

Moe: Well….yeah….but everyone thinks that was cool!

Mooster: So getting expelled is cool? Getting lung cancer from smoking is cool? Skipping classes and failing is cool? Moe….can you please stop and think about what you are saying? If the cool kids suddenly said drinking mustard was cool, would you do it?

Moe: Um…well….I don’t really like mustard, but….

Mooster: And what if the cool thing to do was to stop eating bananas?

Moe: Stop eating bananas? NO WAY! I would NEVER give up eating bananas!!

Mooster: Even if the cool kids said to stop doing it?

Moe: Well I couldn’t stop eating bananas. I’m a monkey! Hello? That’s my main food source. It’s not like I’m going to be replacing my bananas with tofu or something!

Mooster: And if the cool kids suddenly said you should only wear orange?

Moe: Orange really isn’t my color. I don’t think I could do that….

Mooster: So there are things that you wouldn’t do. Why?

Moe: Because they just aren’t “me” Mooster. I don’t want to change who I am.

Mooster: But that’s exactly what you are talking about doing. You never skip classes…but you seemed to think that was okay. You never owned “shades” before. For sure you never spent $175 on anything before – everyone knows you are a huge cheapskate!

Moe: Yeah, I guess I have been doing things that aren’t really me.

Mooster: And the whole oversized pants thing…you really think that’s cool too, Moe?

Moe: Well…the cool kids say it is, but….I do have to confess, I wouldn’t like having to walk around all day long with one hand holding up my pants.

Mooster: I would think that would be very inconvenient.

Moe: But Mooster, I want to be accepted by everyone.

Mooster: Moe, did you know that you won’t ever be able to please everyone? If you please the cool kids, you won’t be pleasing your parents or your uncool friends or your teachers. But, more importantly, if you are overconcerned with being cool, you probably aren’t thinking about whether or not you are bringing honor to the Lord.

Moe: Oh, I hadn’t thought of that. Does God care what I wear and what I do everyday?

Mooster: Sure He does! The Bible says we are to bring our praises to Him. To live for Him. To walk with Him. To be a godly example for others to see Christ. If you are busy trying to be cool, how will you have time for honoring Christ?

Moe: I guess I won’t….

Mooster: Who should you be most concerned about – what the other kids at school think or what God thinks?

Moe: What God thinks. But I have to go to school everyday and I see the kids every day.

Mooster: Moe, you have a lot of really nice friends. I’ve met some of them! Lucy Lioness is really nice. And she is never mean to you. Fanny Pheasant is a funny foul! She tells awesome jokes! And what about Ollie Owl? He’s always a hoot! And he gets really good grades. Bernie Bat is a true friend. He’s a great one to hang around with. He never gets into trouble, either. See – you already have a lot of really cool friends, Moe – but they’re the right kind of cool!

Moe: Wow, Mooster. You are right!!! I never realized how many really good friends I have. They study hard, play fair, obey their parents .. well, most of the time anyway. And they never lie to me or try to deceive me. And most of them know Jesus as their Savior. I don’t think any of the other “cooooool” kids even go to church. It’s probably not cool.

Mooster: You know what, Moe? There’s an old saying that says if you sleep with dogs in your bed you are going to wake up with fleas!

Moe: Yuck! That makes me itch all over!!!

Mooster:  The type of people you hang around with will influence you  - either to do good or to do evil. We need to be careful that we choose friends who will help us to be all that we can be. To do our very best in everything – walking with God, studying in school, playing sports – whatever it is.

Moe: Well, Mooster…I’ve been thinking while you were talking. Maybe concentrating on being cool isn’t the best thing I could be doing. I think I can be thankful for the good friends I have. And maybe WE could be an influence to OTHERS to be OUR kind of cool!

Mooster: That’s a great idea, Moe! Doe that mean you won’t be skipping classes to buy oversized pants?

Moe: Hahahaha, yeah, probably. But Mooster…seriously…about your clothing. I have noticed that you frequently wear mismatched socks. Do you think you could at least try to be a little bit more color-coordinated?

Mooster: I’m a moose, Moe, I don’t care if my socks match! Oh brother.  Bye boys and girls!!

Moe: Bye!