While cell phones and other electronic devices have the ability to become distractions to our devotional lives, they also have the ability to draw us closer to God if used correctly and in moderation. Here are 12 free apps or websites you can use to help you grow in God in 2020:
1. PrayerMate – For Making Prayer Lists
This app serves as a place to keep all of your prayer lists and requests. You can sort your prayer requests into lists and share them with others if you would like to do so. You can also create groups where anyone in the group can add requests. Furthermore, this app offers different biblical prayers you can reflect on, and a reminders feature if you want a notification sent to your phone to remind you to pray.
2. Google Keep Notes – For Taking Sermon/Bible Study Notes
While not specifically a Christian app, this is my favorite place to keep sermon notes and Bible study notes because I can access them from any device through my Google account. I like to write notes in here during church, then add more later when I have time to re-listen to the sermon and do extra study on what was preached.
3. YouVersion Bible App – For Reading the Bible
Not only does this app offer the Bible in many different translations and languages, it also features themed reading plans and a Verse of the Day. You can take notes, highlight portions of scripture, turn verses into memes, and more. I especially like how you can set reminders to read, and how the app tracks your usage, keeping a tally of how many days straight you’ve read scripture; it adds extra motivation for the days where you might be tempted to skip it. (Also available online as a website at www.bible.com)
4. Bible Gateway – For Studying the Bible
While this is another great app for reading the Bible, I use this more as a study tool than a daily devotional app. Bible Gateway offers many translations as well as study tools such as commentaries, dictionaries, maps and more. Search the Bible by key words or topics, make highlights, and add notes. This app also offers a few different reading plans and audio Bibles. (Also available online as a website at www.biblegateway.com)
5. Strong’s Concordance – For Strong’s Numbers and Cross-References
There are many apps that utilize the Strong’s system, but I have found that the “Strong’s Concordance Bible KJV” by Grace Bible Apps on android is my favorite. It says KJV but it boasts over 280 translations in more than 85 languages. Pick a passage of scripture and see numbers for almost every word, clickable to reveal original language meanings and cross-references. While this specific app is not available in the app store, Apple users will find similar features (and even more) in the “Strong’s Concordance” app, which boasts, at time of writing, a 4.8 star rating with over 2,000 reviews.
6. Bible.is – For Listening to the Bible
This app is great for listening to scripture on to go, and it offers dramatized and non-dramatized readings of hundreds of Bibles in many different languages. It also offers on-screen text so you can read along while you listen (a great way to learn how to pronounce all those difficult names!). (Also available online as a website at live.bible.is)
7. Bible Memory – For Memorizing Scripture
Previously known as ScriptureTyper, this app will take your Bible memorization skills to the next level. This app lets you create lists of verses you would like to memorize (and offers some already made), and takes you through a three-step memory process: type over the verse while you see it on screen, type over the verse with some words missing that you have to fill in, then type it by memory. It keeps track of the verses you have memorized and prompts you to review them every couple of days. Create groups, invite friends, and earn points and badges for practicing. (Also available online as a website at www.biblememory.com)
8. Your Church’s Media Page – For Listening to Preaching
Okay, this isn’t an exact app or website, but it’s still one of the most valuable. I listen to my church’s podcast more than I do any other preaching service. Not only do I get to hear our weekly services a second time, but I can look up old messages or services that I missed. If your church doesn’t have a media page, google other churches’ pages. You’ll find a lot of great content put out by churches themselves!
9. Holy Ghost Radio – For Pentecostal Preaching/Live Events
Holy Ghost Radio offers multiple stations for listening to Apostolic preaching (in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Arabic), as well as a music station. They also offer live streams of various church conferences throughout the year, a benefit to many who would love to attend every meeting but don’t have the opportunity to do so. Streaming is free from the app; however, to use it from the website there is a $10 monthly fee (discount if you pay for 12 months at once). They also have a store from which you can purchase specific messages for download.
10. Apostolic Vault & Apostolic Classics – For Pentecostal Preaching
These sister sites offer a collection of messages you can stream for free, one site offering sermons prior to the year 2000, and on the other, sermons from 2000 – present. Messages are sorted by speaker, so you can find and listen to specific sermons of your choosing. Although the app appears to be $0.99 – $1.99 to download, you can use this service for free on their websites at www.apostolicvault.com and www.apostolicclassics.net (note: the website does require users to create a profile before use).
11. My Hope Radio – For Pentecostal Music
The official radio stream of the UPCI, My Hope Radio offers several different stations for listening to Pentecostal artists, as well as some preaching. They offer everything from choir music to southern gospel, from urban gospel to children’s music, and many other genres in between. (Also available online as a website at www.myhoperadio.com)
12. Christian Radio+ / Free Christian Radio – For Overall Christian Radio
Known as Christian Radio+ (iOS) and as Free Christian Radio (android), this app features a collection of Christian radio stations from around the United States. You can stream stations like K-Love and Air1 if contemporary Christian music is your thing, or choose other stations if you’re more into something else like gospel or bluegrass.
Honorable Mentions
These apps didn’t make the list due to not being free, but they’re worth a mention for their value to Christian families:
Covenant Eyes – For Internet Filtering and Accountability
I was eleven years old the first time I accidentally stumbled onto adult content while doing research for a history project. Now that I’m an adult, I find it important to have filters to make sure that type of content doesn’t show up. Not only does Covenant Eyes allow you to set levels of filtering for different ages in your family, it also sends a list of all sites visited to an email address of your choice, if you want to enable the accountability side of it. It currently costs $15.99/month for each family and works on an unlimited number of devices.
Odyssey Adventure Club – For Christian Family Entertainment
Adventures in Odyssey has been a staple for many Christian families over the past thirty years and it’s still going strong. When you join the Adventure Club you can stream 800+ episodes of this family radio show plus get additional content such as a daily devotion, a magazine subscription, and more. The club costs $9.99/month. If you don’t want to pay, you can stream a free daily episode at www.whitsend.org
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