If you’re a fan of free stuff like we are, then check back in next Tuesday for our next installment of #tenfreetues. If you missed last week’s 10 Awesome and Free eBooks Online, don’t. Also be sure to register for the upcoming B21 panel at the SBC 2014. If keynote speakers like Al Mohler, David Platt, Thom Rainer, Matt Chandler, and Danny Akin addressing hot topics isn’t enough incentive, we’ll be giving away free prizes at the event led by two iPad minis. Come spend lunch Tuesday at the SBC with us and get more free stuff. Register here.
10 of the Best Free Apps For Ministry and Christian Living
With the amount of time each of us spend on our phones, why not look to use them as effectively for ministry as possible. As a network of pastors, B21 has put together a list of free apps that have been helpful to us in our ministries. We are confident they will be helpful in yours.
Evangelism: with the technology available there’s no reason for today’s Christian, pastor, or church leader to not have an effective and engaging gospel tract in their pocket on their phone in app form.
1) The Story: This is the official app for the fantastic gospel tract, The Story. This tract is visually appealing and engaging to both follow and present. It breaks down the gospel in 4 major categories–Creation, Fall, Redemption, Restoration–presenting the gospel in a simple yet powerful format, calming nerves and opening up natural and easy conversation.
2) 4 Spiritual Laws: This classic tract, first started by Bill Bright, is available in app form. This approach to the gospel presentation has been used over the years to lead thousands of people to faith in Christ. Appealing and engaging, it presents the gospel in clear and easy to understand points.
3) I Am Second: This is a great tool for small groups/coffee shop Bible studies or for sharing the gospel through contemporary testimonies out and about on the town. The I Am Second app provides great discussion questions, a database of video testimonies, and tools to interact with others in your group through the app.
Mission: We all need to be reminded daily to be missionally focused. Below are great apps to encourage prayer, engagement, and excitement for the movement of the gospel across the globe.
4) CompassionNet: the official app from the IMB, CompassionNet presents audio, video, and written content as how to best pray for both IMB missionaries and unreached people groups. With testimonies and mission video clips, this is a great way to stay connected to the IMB and the work of missionaries being done around the world.
5) Bible.is From Faith Comes by Hearing, the primary benefit of this app is that it has the Bible in hundreds of different of languages and also both dramatized and non-dramatized audio. For those interested, you can also watch the JESUS Film Project in many of these foreign languages. Incredible tool so that no matter where you are in the world you have the Word of God in the heart language of the person with whom you are sharing!
6) Muslim Pro: This app is tailored for Muslims to set up reminders for their daily prayer. However, as Christians it can be used as a reminder for us to pray for our Muslim friends, neighbors, and those across the world that God would open their eyes to the gospel. Customize for your time zone and alert preferences and you will be reminded to pray for the muslim world during their daily prayer calls.
7) Unreached of the Day: From The Joshua Project, this app will send information to your phone every day about an unreached people group. With pictures and prayer requests, this app allows Christians, no matter where we live, to pray daily and specifically for the unreached peoples around the world.
Personal Devotion: Why not use your normal app time on gospel-centered, spiritually enriching resources.
8) John Piper Daily Devotional: “Solid Joys is a daily devotional app from the ministry of John Piper. These short but substantive readings aim to feed your joy in Jesus every day of the year.”
9) Mars Hill Church: While this app allows access to Mars Hills sermons, the main benefit is the free access to the incredible original music content from Mars Hill Music. These artists are producing fantastic and fresh gospel-centered songs with powerful arrangements of lyrics taken straight from the biblical text. And the best part, no commercials!
Bible Apps: No Christian’s smartphone is complete without a Bible app (or 2, or 10). While there are a lot of awesome options out there, here is one you may not have heard of.
10) Bible +: When all others created a simple reader, this app stands out with its interactive interface. The app launches with a visual index of all of the books of the Bible, and then distills it down to each level of the Bible, from Book to Verse. At each level, the user can access additional media pertaining to that particular section. Glo Bible offers up photos, videos, maps and a huge store of additional resources for the user to access.