Apologetics Toolkit: Tips for Lifelong Learning #02

This continues the Apologetics Toolkit series on: Tips for Lifelong Learning. The goal here is to provide a sort of “apologetics toolkit” — habits, tips, and tools the Christian apologist can use to continue to grow, learn, and develop.

Tool #02: Use Audio Resources Effectively

The Problem: There just isn’t enough time in the day to learn everything you want to learn, and books require your undivided attention to be a useful tool. In addition, not everyone has a classroom opportunity available to them. Here is where audio resources come to the rescue.

The Tool: Audio resources come in a variety of formats: podcasts, MP3 audio files, iTunesU courses, audiobooks, etc. With the help of an MP3 player (Apologetics 315 highly recommends the iPod Touch) you can take audio with you practically anywhere. Here are some ideas on how to redeem the time spent doing other things while learning theology, apologetics, and philosophy:

• Commute time: redeem this time by going through an audio program, audio book, podcast, or sermon. Over the course of a year, this time can accumulate into hundreds of hours.
• Exercising: use this time to engage your mind as well as your body.
• Chores: use headphones to benefit from audio learning while ironing, doing dishes, etc.
• Work: if you have the sort of job that allows this, then listening to audio programs while working can also be a good opportunity.

The Benefit: The idea here is that there are hundreds of hours of audio that you can benefit from simply by redeeming the time you are already spending during your commute, exercise, or other activities. You have access to some of the best content available — take advantage of it.

What are your tips for using audio? What methods work best for you?

Get apologetics on your iPod right here!