2017-08-012017-08-01

Featured: When Faith Catches Fire, Overcoming Anxiety, Deep Friendships, more

When Faith Catches Fire
Samuel Rodriguez, Dr. Robert Crosby, WaterBrook Multnomah, 5 days

Featuring daily Bible readings, questions for reflection, and devotional content from their book, pastors and thought leaders Samuel Rodriguez and Dr. Robert Crosby reveal practical ways that you can more fully experience the joy and passion of God’s Spirit, discover unity in the diverse body of Christ, and leave an eternal impact in the lives of others.

What’s Next? Revelation Series with Skip Heitzig
Skip Heitzig and The Connection, 14 days

Pastor and church planter Skip Heitzig shares the context in which Revelation was originally written, the earlier Bible prophecies which led up to it, and its applications for us today, along with video excerpts from his comprehensive teaching on this New Testament book of prophecy.

Known: Finding Deep Friendships in a Shallow World by Dick and Ruth Foth
Dick and Ruth Foth and WaterBrook Multnomah, 5 days

Through short daily Scripture readings, devotional thoughts, and questions for reflection, Bible teachers and speakers Dick and Ruth Foth offer insights into the many ways that God regularly demonstrates that he wants us to know and be known — and how we can live out that purpose in our daily lives.

Toolbox for Life
Rick Warren, 14 days

Featuring daily Bible reading, devotional content from the original message series, and daily audio segments, pastor and bestselling author Rick Warren teaches the eight skills we need to succeed in the mission that God has given us, including “Focus on God’s Opinion,” “Don’t Fight Critics,” “Actively Resist Distraction,” and more.

Overcoming Fear and Anxiety Through Spiritual Warfare
Dr. Carol Peters-Tanksley and Charisma House, 5 days

Dr. Carol Peters-Tanksley begins with daily reflections on Scripture, then expands on those principles with practical spiritual and psychological strategies drawn from her book, each one designed to help you strengthen your mind and your faith.

Doing Things That Matter
Tim Mannin and OKC Community Church, 14 days

Exploring devotional ideas drawn from his book, pastor and church planter Tim Mannin helps you see the biblical foundation for a life of meaning and impact, then introduces you to the four key principles you can begin practicing today to build it: dream wildly, live differently, love recklessly, and lead courageously.

Didn’t find what you were looking for?

Whether you call them Bible Plans, Reading Plans, or Devotionals, we offer Plans that cover a broad range of interests, including many in categories you may not have tried yet. Struggling with stress? Looking for wisdom for your relationships? Need a dose of hope or inspiration? Our Discover feature makes it easy and fun to find just the right Plans for the season of life you’re in!

2017-07-102017-07-10

Announcing the Winners from YouVersion’s 2017 Half-Year Challenge

Two weeks ago, we invited you to join us for our first-ever Half-Year Challenge. Users who completed at least seven days in a row of Bible Plan daily readings anytime between June 25 and July 8 were entered into a random drawing for our grand prize: a T-shirt, a sticker pack, a mug, and an Amazon Fire tablet! The results are in, and the lucky winner is:

Julie L.

Congratulations, Julie!

(Don’t forget to install the Bible App on your new Fire tablet!) 😉

Half-Year Challenge Prizes

Throughout the Challenge, many registered users who shared which Plan they were reading with the hashtag #HalfYearResolution also won prizes.¹ Here they are:

Caitlin M.

Laura G.

Lauren B.

John M.

Donna G.

Michael F.

Scott N.

Halley H.

Keri C.

Maricela M.

¹ Weekly winners will be contacted through the social media channel where you posted. The grand prize winner will be contacted through the email address associated with your YouVersion profile. Winners can expect to receive their prizes within the next few weeks. Refer to our original post for complete contest rules.

Of course, the Half-Year Challenge isn’t about prizes. It’s about connecting with God every day through his Word. So to everyone who completed our first-ever Half-Year Challenge: Way to go! If your special Half-Year Challenge badge hasn’t already appeared on your YouVersion profile, you should see it sometime within the next week.

Keep your momentum going!

We hope your time in God’s Word during these last two weeks has drawn you closer to him. And we hope each day helped you refresh your daily Bible reading habit. Our statistics from past Challenges are clear: once you establish a daily habit for several weeks, that momentum can carry you forward on a streak of consistent time in the Bible.

And, with thousands of Plans in dozens of languages, your next new favorite Plan is just a couple of clicks away:

The Bible App

The Bible App has been installed on almost 276 million unique devices, all over the world. In addition to offering more than 1,500 Bible versions in almost 1,100 languages, the Bible App now features almost 3,300 Bible Plans across dozens of languages. Plans help you build a Bible habit by bringing you select Scriptures each day, and adding context that helps you understand what you’re learning. And the Bible App is always free.

www.bible.com/app

2017-06-302017-06-29

Still time to join🏅with Plans from Lecrae, John MacArthur, more

Half-Year Challenge Badge

We’re halfway through the year and halfway through the Half-Year Challenge, but it’s not too late to join us for fun, inspiration… and prizes!

Lecrae: The Unashamed Devotional
Lecrae and This is Me TV, 6 days

In this series of Scripture selections and daily short videos, Grammy- and Dove-award-winning hip hop artist Lecrae inspires and encourages you — through such topics as personal identity, the source of true value, holding up your end in relationships, and more — and closing each day with a challenge and questions for reflection.

Know Your Why: Finding and Fulfilling Your Calling
Ken Costa and HarperCollins, 7 days

Through daily Bible readings followed by devotional excerpts based on his book Know Your Why, internationally renowned business leader Ken Costa helps you chart your course through seasons of seeking, shifting circumstances, setbacks, and more, all while cheering you on toward closer relationship with God.

The Gospel According to Paul
John MacArthur and Thomas Nelson, 5 days

Master expositor and Bible teacher John MacArthur walks you through the apostle Paul’s teachings on the Good News of Jesus, helping you answer such questions as, How can I know that I am right with God? What is the gospel — really? How can I share the gospel with others? and more.

Depression: Hope Inside Out
Julie Thomas, Ph.D., and Abide, 3 days

Join author, life coach, wife and mother Julie Thomas, as she shares personal, intimate scenes from her own story: a journey through depression, healing, and recovery, in three days of audio devotional and prayer.

The New City Catechism: Questions & Answers for Our Hearts & Minds
The New City and Crossway, 7 days

This series of daily devotionals introduces adults and children to the foundational principles of what it means to be a Christian, using a simple formula that helps you easily understand: Read a Bible passage, followed by a simple question about the passage, followed by a plain answer to the question.

God Hunger: Meditations for a Life of Longing
Dominic Muir and River Publishing, 7 days

International evangelist and teacher Dominic Muir helps you daily renew your passion for God’s presence, then invites you to fulfill that spiritual yearning with Jesus’ grace, in this series of daily meditations on God’s Word drawn from his book God Hunger.

Better than You Can Imagine
Patrick M. Quinn, Ken Roach, and David C Cook, 4 days

Featuring excerpts from his book Better than You Can Imagine, pastor and author Patrick M. Quinn shares three biblical promises that God wants to use to transform your life, true stories of real-life world-changers (people who are actually “just normal” — just like you), and practical action steps you can take right now to begin your own adventure.

Unlimited Kingdom
Good News Unlimited, 14 days

Because Jesus spoke more often about “the kingdom of heaven” than about anything else, this short series of devotionals and daily Scripture seeks to help you answer: What is the Kingdom of Heaven — and what does it mean for me to live within it?

We’ve got Plans…for you.

The Bible App’s “Plans for…” feature helps you find Plans developed specifically for you — by sorting them into convenient categories, including Women, Singles, Parents, Youth, Young Adults, Families, Men, and Kids. We even offer a category of Plans selected for groups to do together. Whatever you’re looking for that’s for you, tap below to find it.

2017-06-222017-06-28

YouVersion’s 2017 Half-Year Challenge: A fresh start to your Bible habit.

Half-Year Challenge Starts Soon
If you joined us for the 21-Day Challenge earlier this year, then you know how great it can feel to start a daily Bible reading habit. We’re convinced that one of the best ways to start engaging with the Bible every day is to complete one short Plan after another.

That’s what the Half-Year Challenge is all about: helping you renew your daily habit of connecting with God’s Word.

For two weeks beginning June 25, let us inspire you!

Prize Pack

Here’s how it works.

Between June 25 and July 8, complete at least seven days in a row of Bible Plan daily readings, and you’ll earn our special 2017 Half-Year Challenge badge, and be eligible for exciting prizes.

You don’t have to do just one Plan that’s seven days. You can be in the middle of a Plan that’s longer than seven days. Or you can complete a Plan that you’re already doing, then start a new one immediately after it. Just make sure you complete at least one day of at least one Plan every day, for seven days in a row!

Official Rules

📲 Get the Bible App

Make sure you have the Bible App installed on a device (or devices), or on the web at Bible.com, that you will be able to use every day from June 25th to July 8th.

✔ Sign Up for a Free Account

If you haven’t already, create your own free YouVersion account (or sign in with Facebook or Google).

📑 Start a Bible Plan

Sign up for a Bible Plan — or for several. We recommend that you browse through Plans that interest you and use Save for Later to collect the ones you want to use for the Half-Year Challenge.

Note: You don’t have to begin a new Plan on June 25th. If you already started a Plan before June 25th — or more than one — that’s great! Just keep going, and don’t miss any days. (Keep reading for more.)

🗓 Read Each Day

At least 7 days in a row from June 25th to July 8th, go to your Plans > My Plans and complete the daily selection for at least one of the Plans you’re subscribed to.

IMPORTANT! Each day when you complete your selections, make sure they get checked off. (More on this in a moment.)

👏🏽 Share Your Progress, Be Entered to Win Prizes

After you complete a day’s reading, inside the Bible App, go to that Plan’s Info page ( > Plan Info), tap the share icon ( or ) and share your Plan to Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, and include the hashtag #HalfYearResolution. Sharing is not necessary to earn your Badge, but it is required to be entered to win one of many prizes we’ll be giving away.

IMPORTANT! When you post on social media, we cannot see posts that are “Friends,” “Private,” or “Only Me.” Make sure that you mark your social media post as “Public” — AND that you include #HalfYearResolution — or we won’t be able to see your entry.

¹ Prizes include YouVersion-branded items such as a T-shirt, stickers, drinkware, tablets, and more. Prizes are subject to change or substitution based on availability. Winners will be contacted with details about how to receive their prizes. Because of some limitations with international shipping, not all items will be available to ship to all countries.

🏅 Earn a Badge!

All users who complete the Half-Year Challenge — reading the day’s selections from at least one Bible Plan each day for 7 days in a row (June 25th to July 8th) — will receive their special commemorative badge in the Bible App. (No Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram posts required.)

IMPORTANT! Badges will be automatically awarded based upon having 7 days in a row checked off during the Challenge. This is why it is so important that you ensure that each day’s reading is ACTUALLY CHECKED OFF.

Start by finding some Plans.

The Half-Year Challenge begins in just a few days, so we recommend that you start looking now for the Plans you’ll want to do during the Challenge. The Plans we’ve listed below aren’t required for the Challenge; they’re just some ideas to help you get started. When you find a Plan you think you’d enjoy, open it and tap “Save for Later.” Then, remember to start your Plan on June 25!

2017-06-012017-09-11

Plans: Mark Batterson, Mandisa, Eugene Peterson, Elevation Worship, more

As Kingfishers Catch Fire
Eugene Peterson and WaterBrook & Multnomah, 3 days

Join pastor-poet Eugene Peterson (translator/author of The Message Bible) in Scripture readings and devotional excerpts from his book As Kingfishers Catch Fire, which focuses on living truthfully, the true meaning of friendship, and what genuine love looks like.

Mandisa: Out of the Dark Devotional

Mandisa and Capitol CMG, 7 days

Chronicling her personal journey — through depression, despair, and hopelessness into a deeper relationship with Christ — Grammy award winner Mandisa shares the Bible passages and insights that led to the songs on her album Out of the Dark.

Mark Batterson and Baker Publishing, 7 days

Featuring devotional excerpts from his book Play the Man, pastor and bestselling author Mark Batterson leads men toward fulfilling their spiritual calling, sharing the seven virtues of manhood inspired by the true story of the martyr Polycarp, as well as by other historical heroes of the Christian faith.

Reclaiming the Lost Art of Biblical Meditation

Robert Morgan and HarperCollins, 7 days

Through Scripture, devotional excerpts, and practical daily tips from the book Reclaiming the Lost Art of Biblical Meditation, learn how you can reduce stress and anxiety by engaging with God’s Word, reflecting on it, and then applying it to your everyday life.

There Is a Cloud

Elevation Church, 7 days

Leaders and musicians from Elevation Worship (hailing from Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC) share the biblical promises from God that inspired the lyrics for songs on their album, There Is a Cloud.

Proper Ambition: Christ-Centered Motivation @ Work

Called to Create, 3 days

Find caution in these biblical examples of ambitious endeavors, even as you learn how you can genuinely explore your own motives, so that you can ensure your life and work will endure by glorifying God and serving others.

7 More Hebrew Words Every Christian Should Know

Dave Adamson, 7 days

In this follow-up to 7 Hebrew Words Every Christian Should Know, North Point Online Pastor Dave Adamson teaches you seven more key Hebrew words that will help you better understand the Bible, then provides you with free, social-media-ready images that let you easily share them with your friends.

Still looking? Find hope in God’s Word.

Whatever’s going on in your life right now, face it head-on with biblical wisdom. The Bible App’s “Discovery” feature helps you choose among color-coded emotion categories such as stress, loss, and doubt, to name just a few. If what you could use right now is a boost of encouragement, tap below to explore Plans from our Hope category.