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The Bible App for Kids Celebrates Its First Anniversary

The Bible App for Kids is 1 YEAR OLD!

The Bible App for Kids launched one year ago on Thanksgiving 2013. Throughout the past year, children all over the world have been discovering God’s Word through a unique Bible experience all their own. Designed in partnership with OneHope, the Bible App for Kids has been installed on more than 4 million unique devices in 218 different countries. Kids have already spent more than 10 million minutes exploring more than 20 delight-filled stories.

It’s thrilling to see so many little ones growing in their love for God’s Word, and we’re looking forward to seeing how it shapes their generation. We’re also pretty excited about some recent and upcoming additions to the app.

More stories are coming. Next up will be “A Hairy Tale,” the Old Testament story of redemption about Samson, the man with long hair and miraculous strength.

More languages are coming, too. The Bible App for Kids launched a Spanish version this summer, then added Chinese and Korean just days ago, bringing new ways for kids to engage with God’s Word in the language of their hearts, no matter where they live. In the coming months, even more languages will be making their debut — like Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, and Arabic.

About the Bible App for Kids

If you already have the Bible App for Kids, simply open the app and tap the icon for “Waters Part and Walls Fall.” But even if you don’t have the Bible App for Kids yet, it’s easy to get, and always completely free.

Installed on more than 4 million devices, the Bible App for Kids comes from YouVersion, makers of the Bible App™. In partnership with OneHope, the Bible App for Kids was specifically designed to provide your children with a delight-filled Bible experience all their own. Here are all the places where you can get the Bible App for Kids:

The Bible App for Kids icon

Website: bible.com/kids

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YouVersion community passes monumental milestone . . .

20 Million Completed Bible Plans

Plans make your daily Bible reading easy and convenient.

We hear it from the YouVersion community all the time: Bible Plans have radically improved your consistency in connecting with God’s Word every day. But at 20 million completions, we’re only getting started. We add terrific new Plans all the time, along with new features designed to help you find the best Plans for your needs:

See what’s new, and what’s classic.
A convenient addition to your Bible App Home screen now shows our currently featured Plans. While many of the Plans we spotlight are new, we also love sharing popular favorites that you might enjoy. Anytime you spot a Plan that intrigues you, just tap it to learn more.

Discover your next favorite.
Many of our newer Bible Plans now feature high-resolution images that make browsing for your next Plan a pleasure. And with hundreds of Bible Plans to choose from, images can help you find what you’re looking for faster.

Find inspiration from your Friends.
Every Bible Plan has its own page, one stop telling what it covers, how many days it lasts, and more — like which of your Friends are currently subscribed to a plan, which Friends have completed it, and how many people overall in the YouVersion community have completed it. Seeing which Plans your Friends are enjoying is a great way to find Plans you might also like.

It’s all in your latest update.

If you have your device set to update your apps automatically, all of these great new features are already waiting for you inside the Bible App. But if not, simply update your Bible App to the latest version.

Find your next Bible Plan

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New Bible App for Kids Stories about Jesus: “Beloved Son” and “A Test in the Desert”

The Bible App for Kids has two new stories about Jesus, both available now! Based on the New Testament accounts of Jesus’ baptism, “Beloved Son” shows John the Baptist preparing for Jesus’ arrival as the Savior of the world. And when Jesus comes to John to be baptized, you’ll see God’s Spirit descending on Jesus like a dove.

The Holy Spirit descends on Jesus at His baptism

Then, “A Test in the Desert” recounts the story of Satan testing Jesus, as told both in Matthew 4 and Luke 4. God’s Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness, where he fasts for 40 days, just before he’s confronted by Satan. Your kids will see Jesus quoting Scripture to Satan before he passes the test.

Jesus sends Satan away after His temptation in the wilderness

About the Bible App for Kids

If you already have the Bible App for Kids on your device, all you need to do to get these new stories is open the app and tap the icon for each one. But even if you don’t have the Bible App for Kids yet, it’s easy to get it now. (It’s always completely free.)

Already installed on more than 4 million devices, the completely free Bible App for Kids is the newest app from YouVersion, makers of the Bible App™. In a partnership with OneHope, the Bible App for Kids was specifically designed to give your children a delight-filled Bible experience all their own, here are all the places where you can get the Bible App for Kids:

The Bible App for Kids icon

Website: bible.com/kids

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Bible App Adds Condensed View for Bookmarks, Highlights, Notes

The latest version of the Bible App has a handy new feature, Condensed View, that lets you see more of what you want on the screen. Previously, your Bookmarks, Highlights, and Notes all displayed on their respective screens as a list, the same way they appear in your Home view, showing you the Likes and Comments for each.

But now, you can tap the icon in the top right corner of any of these screens—Bookmarks, Highlights, or Notes—and your list toggles to “condensed” mode, showing you more of them at a time. If you want to see them in expanded view again, tap the icon again, and it toggles back. And this new Condensed View is smart, too: the Bible App remembers the last view you selected and defaults to it when you come back.

To see Condensed View in action, first make sure you have the latest version of the Bible App for your device. Then check each of your Bookmarks, Highlights, and Notes screens for the new icon in the top right corner.

Condensed view

 

 

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Top Questions About Bible App Friends

The latest version of the Bible App is designed specifically to help you explore God’s Word together with your most trusted friends. When you use the Bible App’s community features, you’re strengthening your relationships, putting the Bible at the center of your friendships… and drawing closer to God.

Friends settings inside the Bible App

We’ve answered the questions we’re hearing to help you decide how you want to bring Friends into your Bible experience:

1. What happens if I decline a Friend request?

When you tap Decline for a Friend request, that specific request is simply removed. The requester does not receive a notification that you declined. However, once the Bible App has removed that request, that also means that the requester can send you another Friend request in the future if they choose to.

2. Can I “Unfriend” someone?

Yes. Friendships are mutual. You always control who shares your Bible App experience with you.

  • Tap the main menu button. The main menu displays.
  • Tap Friends. Your current Friends list displays.
  • Tap the user you would like to Unfriend.
  • Tap Friend. The Bible App asks if you’re sure you wish to Unfriend this user.
  • Tap Unfriend. You no longer have a Friend connection with this user in the Bible App. (The requester does not receive a notification that you declined.)
    Note: This means that this user may request Friendship with you again—and also that you may request Friendship with them again, if you change your mind later.

3. How many Friends can I have in the Bible App?

Up to 150. Studies suggest most people only have the capacity to maintain about that many significant relationships. Limiting your Friends to people you know well makes the Bible App an environment for honest conversations and shared discoveries centered around Scripture.

4. Will my Friends be able to see all my Bible App activity?

By default, yes. But you can customize most Bible App activities as you go, choosing who can see what.

  • Likes and Comments. You can Like and Comment on Friends’ activities, as well as on your own. Your Likes and Comments show up in your Friends’ feeds, as well as underneath the activity you Liked or Commented on. To un-Like something, simply tap the heart again. To delete one of your Comments:
    • iOS: Swipe left across your Comment, then Delete.
    • Android: Long press on your Comment, then Delete.
    • Web: Click the “x” on the right side of your Comment.
  • Highlights. Your Highlights display in your Friends’ feeds as you create them. To change or remove one of your Highlights: Go to main menu > Highlights. Find the Highlight you want to change, tap the settings icon, and select what you want.
  • Bookmarks. When you Bookmark a passage, your Friends’ feeds show what you Bookmarked, but does not show the Bookmark Title or Labels. To change or remove one of your Bookmarks: Go to main menu > Bookmarks. Find the Bookmark you want to change, tap the settings icon, and select what you want.
  • Bible Plans. When you start a Plan, the Bible App asks if you want your Friends to see your Plan activity. If you say No, that Plan is tagged as Private, and none of your Plan activity will display in your Friends’ feeds. If you say Yes, then your Friends’ feeds will show that you started that Plan. They’ll also see each time you complete a day of the Plan, and when you finish the Plan. To change these settings at any time, simply go to the Plan’s settings, scroll to the Privacy section, and select Private or Friends Only.
  • Notes. When you create a Note, you can set it as Public, Friends, Private, or Save as Draft. To change or remove one of your Notes: Go to main menu > Notes. Find the Note you want to change, tap the settings icon, and select what you want.

5. What do Friends bring to my Bible App experience?

  • Trust. You and each Friend agree to be connected, so you can shape your experience around the people you’re closest to. And if you’d like to make any adjustments along the way, you can add or Unfriend at any time.
  • Encouragement. See your Friends’ Bible Plan progress and encourage each other to stick with it. Share what you learn from a day’s reading, or simply which part of that day’s reading you liked best.
  • Conversation. Like and comment on each other’s Bookmarks, Highlights, Notes, and other activity. Discuss what you’re reading, ask questions, share insights, and pray for one another.
  • Growth. People from all over the world have been telling us that connecting with their Friends through the Bible App has helped grow their understanding of the Bible. And just as many say that sharing the Bible with their friends is drawing them closer together.

Want to Know More?

This series of blog posts can help you understand everything about the Bible App: