Smartphones as Bibles

Posted by Jeremy on Jul 20, 2010 in Blog, From the Pastor | View Comments

This past Sunday we invited one of the members of our community, Chris, to read the Scripture before the message. (We hope to continue doing this, since we want to find as many way as possible for people to be involved with the worship service. If you’d like to read at a service, contact Tim McHugh.) You may have noticed that when Chris went up to go and read, he didn’t actually bring a Bible with him. And no, he didn’t have the passage memorized (at least, not the ESV translation). Instead, Chris was using his iPhone as a Bible.

Many people, like Chris, have found that the most convenient Bible to carry around, have on them, and read throughout the day is the one that is installed on their smartphone. In many worshiping communities it has already become commonplace to see people pull out their iPhones, Blackberries, Palm’s, and Android devices to read along with the Scripture as the pastor reads from his text. Although this isn’t anything that’s particularly new–Bible texts have been available on PDA’s for some time–the prevalence of smartphones means that more and more people have access to a digital bible, and consequently, it doesn’t seem as weird for a person to pull out their phone and follow along. It used to be that if you pulled out your PDA in church, people assumed you were playing Tetris. Increasingly, however, the assumption is you’re just reading your Bible.

That’s not to say that we’re all totally comfortable with it yet, though. Maybe we’re okay reading along with the Pastor on our digital bible, but what happens if we receive a text message? What about tweeting in church? And is there a possibility that we might get sidetracked and just take a quick peek at Facebook, or the latest scores on the internet? Wouldn’t it be better to just leave the phone in our pocket and do things the old fashioned way?

Maybe it would be. But the cat’s already out of the bag. (Or, the phone’s already out of the pocket.) And I say, let’s embrace it. Technology will only become more and more a part of our lives. Just because it may require discipline to use it well (like not clicking over to the Facebook app), doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be used at all. If using a digital bible means that people are using a bible, then I consider that a win. And maybe that random tweet during service piques someone’s curiosity about what we’re doing so that they decide to check it out the next week. You just never know.

So let me invite you to pull out your smartphones and follow along during services. If it’s a distraction, put it away. But don’t let the possibility of it being a distraction stop you from using it for some positive purposes, like reading the Scripture.

If you’re looking for a good app for your phone, LifeChurch.tv has spent significant resources producing what is by far the best Bible Reading app on mobile platforms, and possibly on the web. You can go to www.youversion.com to check out more information and find out if they make an app for your phone. While you’re there, make sure to create an account and join the Restore group at http://www.youversion.com/groups/restore. We look forward to seeing you there!