Make every effort to present yourself before God as a proven worker who does not need to be ashamed, teaching the message of truth accurately. -2 Timothy 2:15 (NET)

I have heard many times over that one of the best things a Christian can do on a daily basis (other than pray and worship) is to study the Bible. Not just read it or pick out some random verses by chance, but actually sit down and study it. So what do you need for an effective Bible study? Well, you need a plan and the tools to carry it out effectively.  The plan is something you can work out with an elder from your church or pastor. The tools you can spend a lot of money for or none at all — your call. I frankly find the free resources available on the Web and in “App stores” such as Google Play or Apple’s App Store are suitable enough for me. I plan to highlight and discuss a couple of the more popular apps in this post today.

All three popular apps I am going to mention today can be found in either Google Play or the Apple App Store. It really is more a matter of what you need and personal preference than it is anything else.

The first is called YouVersion. It has been around for some time and offers a very large choice (at least in English) of Bible versions — many of which can be downloaded for offline use when your tablet or smart phone is not online. I’m not a big fan of the Web site but I do use the app on both my Android smartphone and also my iPad Mini on a daily basis. It offers a plethora of free daily devotionals that run in various lengths form a few days to a year. The YouVersion app also offers [I think] more downloadable Bible versions than any other I have used. The app and everything I have tried are free, but sending a donation to keep this vital ministry alive and well is always a good idea. I have to say this is probably my favorite.

Another great app for both Android and iOS is Blue Letter Bible (blb.org). While this app offers the fewest amount of Bible versions for download or even online use, it does offer some excellent commentary, dictionaries and other resources. A definite favorite (especially for me, since I’m a Chuck Smith fan). Tapping on a specific verse results in a pop-up menu with all kinds of resources to explore the verse and its  context.

Lastly, I would be remiss not to mention Bible Gateway (biblegateway.com). While the service and apps are free, I pay a small fee each month for access to a great deal of really good research material (commentaries, Study Bibles, etc). For those who do not wish to carry a study Bible around with them or read it on a daily basis, having ready access to several of them might be a good thing!