I feel like I've had a lot of people message me or seen a lot of people asking about "Christian" podcasts to listen to. While it's relatively easy to find podcasts about anything you want to listen to, it seems difficult to find good Christian podcasts to listen to. I've assembled a short list of what I'm listening to right now. Maybe you'll find something you like.

Holy Ghost Stories - told by Justin Gerhardt, self-described as "telling Bible stories in all their weird, haunting fantastic-ness." This podcast is frankly amazing. It's more than just dramatic readings of Scripture, it's almost Scripture novelized. This is one of those podcasts you should definitely listen to at least one episode of just to hear it. My bet is that you'll be hooked. > holyghoststories.org

Preachers in Training - with 13 seasons of catalog to listen to, The Light Network's Preachers in Training is one of my favorites. And you don't need to be a preacher to listen, but it's especially helpful for ministers out there. Different guests and different topics every week. > thelightnetwork.tv/tag/preachers

Bible Project Podcast - I've loved nearly everything Tim and Jon at the Bible Project have put out, so it's no surprise I'd love their official podcast. It's a very diverse topical show, featuring series' of study as well as interviews. Highly recommended. > bibleproject.com/podcasts/the-bible-project-podcast/

Bible Study Podcast with Wes McAdams - formerly the CrossTalk podcast, Wes McAdams hosts this show about Biblical topics, usually with a guest on every show. Just like his writing at Radically Christian, Wes offers practical discussion and insights on difficult topics in a loving but bold way. > radicallychristian.com/category/podcast

Thinking in Public with Albert Mohler - I've been a fan of Mohler for a long time, and his podcast is wonderful. He talks mostly about sensitive subjects but from a Christian perspective, with great guests and a humble attitude. > albertmohler.com/category/podcast

"Holiday Gift Guide with Chad Landman"

I was extremely happy and honored to be asked to be on Preachers in Training for their Holiday Gift Guide for 2017. Robert Hatfield is a dear friend and I was so happy to be on the show.

The PiT Gift Guide has become somewhat of a tradition in the last few years for me, and again, I'm thankful Robert had me on. We had a lot of fun and talked about some great (mostly inexpensive) gifts for the minister in your life.

Check out the show here and the links below.

Tech

• Sony IC Recorder ICD-UX560 ($68, http://d.pr/ZHqKzo)
• Anker Quick Charge 5-Port USB Charger ($36, http://d.pr/Pltm6P)
• Apple Magic Keyboard ($89, http://d.pr/SvkM8R)
• Torras Slim-Fit iPhone 7 case ($6, http://d.pr/tWxPUs)
• Apple iPad Pro 10.5 ($599, B&H - http://d.pr/t5cFAq)

Gear

• Field Notes notebooks ($9-12, Sub - $97/yr, fieldnotesbrand.com)
• Vanquest PPM-Slim Organizer ($16, http://d.pr/moCvSk)
• Maxpedition Janus Gear pouch ($34, http://d.pr/5ytZ7g)

Books

• Forgiven, Forgiving and Free by Dan Winkler ($10, amazon.com)
• Journey to a Better Place by Cynthia Dianne Guy ($13, gospeladvocate.com)
• Durable New Testament ($14, amazon.com)

"Why don't we make wireless earbuds?" I said.

I think it was the the third or fourth time that my headphone cords had gotten caught on my push mower's handles while mowing the yard that I asked that question to myself the other day. "At this point," I told myself, "we really should have the means to create something like wireless earbuds."

I know what you're saying right now too - "But Chad, we already have wireless headphones!" Yes, you're right, we do. But not truly cordless or wireless.

99% of the "wireless" headphones these days actually have a wire that connects them. They are Bluetooth and therefore not physically connected to your device, but they still have those wires that get in the way.

So over the last week or so, I've been on a crusade to find a true, wireless earbud. And no joke, I found a decent one for thirteen dollars.

You read that correctly. While not without cons, this earbud has sparked my imagination for what the future could hold.

It all started when I read Jon Li's excellent article entitled The Future of Technology is in Your Ear. He did the same experiment with the $13 wireless earbud named the ERGO Invisible Bluetooth Earbud. I invite you to read his excellent article, because he and I agree on a lot. Here's my observations.

Freedom without wires (of any kind) is awesome. If the ERGO did one thing well, it was that it casted audio to my ear wirelessly from my phone in my pocket without problems. There are no wires to speak of, just a small earbud with one button that fit into my ear and didn't jostle out with moderate activity. Getting in and out of the car without hassling with wires was great. Walking around my office talking on the phone with it was wonderful.

It might be perfect for those who listen to podcasts. It was great for listening to podcasts, which is what I'm listening to most of the time. Spoken word doesn't need a lot of bass or range, it just needs to be clear. I did find that the treble was a little high on some shows, i.e. people's "S's" would sound harsh. But the earbud got plenty loud for me at only 50% volume while driving in the car.

Not so great is listening to music. This is an earbud that's not designed for a lot of range or fidelity, and with it only being in one ear, it's not ideal for music. To me, listening to a podcast in one ear while being able to hear what's around me was kind of great. So if you're a music lover and listener, you better pass on this.

Receiving calls is fine. In the few phone calls I used this earbud for, it did a pretty good job considering it's only $13. My person on the other end said it always sounded as if I was talking on speakerphone, but they could still hear me just fine. So, maybe not ideal for long conversations, but short ones would probably work.

Battery life is pretty terrible. The first day I got the earbud, I didn't charge it at all and got almost two hours of listening to a podcast through it before it gave me a low battery warning. Ever since, two hours seems to be the most it can get. And for a tiny earbud that's only $13, you can't expect much. The Batteries widget on the iPhone is helpful as well, but even leaving the earbud on charge for several hours, it never registered above 70%. Again, thirteen dollars.

I think about all the implications of this kind of device. There are other true wireless bluetooth headphones out there, but none this cheap. This little device made me really start thinking that if someone like Apple with Beats really put the wood behind the arrow on something like this, how awesome could the future be - in your ear?

One of the things God has blessed me with was the ability to know stuff about technology that most other people don't know. I don't say this because I'm an expert (because I'm not), I say this because every day I come across someone who surprises me with either their knowledge or lack thereof about technology.

I was fortunate enough to be able to attend the Youth Ministry Workshop at the Freed-Hardeman Lectureships this past week - and I was on the other side of the table. I know a lot of stuff about technology - maybe too much. But I learned about new ways of doing things, new apps, new ways to create apps - stuff I had literally never heard before. 

So my new podcast I (re)started about 2 weeks ago is just that. It's about technology - both the tools we can use and the lessons we can learn from it in ministry. It's called Ministry Bits, and you don't have to go too far to listen. 

There are lots of people in the ministry that you and I know that are good at a lot of different things. Some are good at graphics. Some are good at using technology to preach and teach. So how can we use their knowledge to make our ministries better? We can see how they did it. 

If we want to be like Christ, we need to do the things he did. If we want to use technology effectively in our ministries, then we need to do the things that effective people do. 

Ministry Bits is an attempt to cobble together all this knowledge into one weekly podcast, so that everyone can listen and benefit. We will have guests in the coming weeks talk about perspectives on technology in ministry, reading, writing, and teaching and preaching in ministry. I hope that you the listener will benefit greatly from their knowledge and experience. We'll have shows on apps, workflows, and gadgets to use in ministry. 

Thank you in advance for supporting the new podcast. It's going to be a great ride. 

You can check out Ministry Bits right here on the website, or you can subscribe with iTunes in your favorite podcast client for easy listening. Shows run 25-30 minutes, no more. Your time is valuable. If you have a request, a comment, or would even like to be on the show, give me a shout at chad.landman@gmail.com.