Each week we select a particularly difficult portion of the Bible, working our way through a start in Genesis to Revelation

If you're wondering who I am, why should you listen to me? I can think of several reasons:

1. There’s a tremendous amount of top notch scholarship and presentations involving each of the passages we discuss. My calling is to summarize those in an easy to understand format, giving ample credit for the good work done. In essence, my job is taking what can be a bit complicated, from some of the best Christian minds, and making it little less so.

2. I am on the same journey as you. There are Bible passages that I struggle with understanding, and I want to “figure it out” as well. If we disagree, I am cool with that too.

3. I felt I needed a bit of Christian apologetic background myself. I received my Certificate in Christian Apologetics from Biola University in 2023. It whet my appetite to do more–and this is how I am scratching that itch.

4. Lastly, when it comes to the end times, I am a “pan-millennialist.” Not my term but one I love. What does that mean? It means I think it all pans out for those who put their faith, hope and love in Jesus Christ.
 

After 35 years in the Human Resources field, I retired in October 2023. I was looking for a retirement hobby when I came across a book called "The Big Book of Bible Difficulties" by Norman L/ Geisler and Thomas Howe. In going through this book I thought it would be a great idea for a new Podcast. I'm a Podcast "junkie" listening to hours of podcasts each day. So, while I was familiar with the concept of podcasting, I didn't know how to do it myself.

In researching the best (and as a hobby--cheapest) way to begin podcasting, I went with Podbean. To date I have been very pleased. I even found that recording through my Apple Earbuds sounded better than a microphone and mine-soundboard I had purchased.

So after creating the Podbean site, I recorded my first trailer and submitted it to all the major podcasting apps. While the initial plan was to wait until January to begin the weekly podcast, I couldn't wait! So I recorded five introductory episodes detailing Christian Apologetics, three philosophical arguments for the existence of God and are the New Testament writings reliable. Then in January, I start with Genesis 1:1 and work our way through the Bible each week for a Podcast episode. I cover the difficult Bible passage, along with the authors' explanation, and supplement it with additional research from today's top Christian Apologists.
 

I will record and release podcast episodes weekly. The book allows me a great starting point each week and I have bookmarked a number of top Christian Apologists to supplement the learning. I found I can complete the work in about 2 days, including research, writing, recording and editing.

The podcast is limited to 15 minutes or less. I get really frustrated with podcasters who start small, time-wise, with their podcast. Then it becomes 30 minutes and then it becomes an hour or more each episode. It becomes very difficult to keep enjoying podcasts when they have that sort of "time-creep." So, I stick to my time limit of 15 minutes or less. It forces me to edit and keep what is really important. And, it shows the listeners that I value their time.

Podcasting is a hobby. I spend an annual amount to host on Podbean and that is the only expense I have. So I don't spend money on any marketing and don't have any plans to generate any revenue.
 

I do not have enough monthly downloads to qualify for any type of monetization. If that happens down the road, great. But, that is not my main driving force. I wanted a retirement hobby that kept my mind active and helped me to learn more about the greatest book ever written. So far it's kept me excited about researching, learning, and sharing that knowledge with others.
 

I reside completely in the Podbean arena. I utilize their recording platform and hosting services, along with their podcast distribution channels.

Each week I research, write and prepare a script to record. Typically I will go through several reads, out loud, as it helps me find errors or items to clarify when I hear it out loud. Then, once I am happy with the script, I time it to make sure it fits under 15 minutes. Once that's done, I record in one shot. It makes me slow down and focus when I know I'm only going to do this once.
 

I market the show on my personal social media sites. Podbean gives me a record of where my listeners reside (even have one in Russia!). The podcast app breakdown is really interesting. The majority seem to use either Apple Podcasts or Spotify. I found that interesting since neither was my podcast app of choice. Interestingly, to me, folks seem to find the Spotify app easier to access--so that's the one I send out when people reach out to me directly.
 

The most difficult part of any podcast is coming up with an idea. I searched and couldn't find a podcast that had this type of systematic journey through the Bible with an emphasis on Christian Apologetics. I'm a big fan of Podbean as it really does make it easy for a beginner like me who is using the podcast as a hobby.

The one thing I wish I knew was how difficult it was to get a logo approved through Apple Podcasts. Trying to get the correct pixel size was difficult for a novice like me. Plus, working on a chromebook made the process even more difficult for the Apple site. I lost 12 days of potential listeners trying to get my logo approved by Apple. This is a double-whammy too as a number of podcast apps utilize the Apple Podcast feed--so my show was getting on their platforms either.
 

You may reach us at our website, bibledifficultiesandanswers.podbean.com/ or you may reach out to me directly at our email address: bibledifficultiesandanswers@gmail.com with any questions, comments, concerns, fits of righteous indignation or just to say Hi. Also, please like and subscribe to this podcast and also, write a review and give it a 5-Star rating on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Podbean, iHeart, or your podcast venue of choice.