It’s Sunday morning and Church is about to begin. The teenagers funnel their way into the Sunday school classroom and snag a seat (anywhere but the front). The young Youth Pastor greets everyone as they sit down. Once everyone is settled he asks,
Okay, everyone pull out your Bibles!
From his back pocket he pulls out his iPhone and begins to read the mornings primary scripture.
Wait, what? Using an iPhone instead of the Bible? Are you crazy?!
The Youth Pastor in this example is, in fact, me. And to answer the question, yes, I use my iPhone for a Bible when I teach sometimes. And no, I’m not crazy. At least I don’t think so. I’ll let you decide.
You see, I love the Word of God. I treasure it and hold it as the utmost authority in my life, and my ministry work. And you may believe that by resorting to an iPhone instead of a physical Bible that I am in some way cheapening the lesson in an attempt to be cutting edge and hip. You’d be wrong.
If you think about it, the Bible itself is a piece of technology. In ancient days, the highest form of technology that they had was hand-written scrolls. Once the printing press was invented (thanks to new technology) we then began printing Bibles. For a long time this was the highest form of technological advancement in Bible reading.
Today, thanks to apps like the YouVersion Bible app, we have the ability to carry with us a digital copy of the entire Bible at all times. Furthermore, we can have it in every language, every translation, right in the palm of our hands, at all times.
Not only can you read the Bible, but some apps allow you to take notes, bookmark, and even share verses with your social networks! I personally like taking notes in Evernote while listening to sermons.
Now, there are some potential drawbacks. I realize that if you allow the students to have their phones out, they may just be text messaging or playing Angry Birds instead of reading along. That is definitely something to take into consideration.
However, if you give a student a physical Bible, sermon notes, and a pen aren’t they just as easily distracted? I know when I was a teenager, I was way more likely to doodle than fill in the answers. Even worse, I was more inclined to pass notes rather than take notes.
I think this comes down to leadership. I give my students my expectations and trust them to not take advantage. In the past, I have not had many problems with this. The students who are following along on their smartphones have generally honored my trust in them.
For me and my students, I have observed that allowing the use of technology increases the likelihood of my students engagement. What youth pastor doesn’t want their students engaging more, reading more, and having more fun learning about Jesus?
Is allowing smartphone usage taking technology in the church too far?
Dustin Stout
Blogger at DustinStout.com I spend most of my professional life in the digital realm. Social. Web. Strategy. Design. And coffee. Lots of coffee.
A good read Dustin!
I remember recently a preacher at Uni saying some quick quip about how everyone should have real bibles and not just phones. But as you say, the latest technology used to be scrolls, then books and now phones.
I loved the point you made about how distracting pen and paper is. Definitely true. I also lime how much trust you give your students. I haven’t seen much written about using your smartphone as a bible, so thanks!
Glad you enjoyed it!
This has come up a few times in the past weeks… guess folks are rethinking whether or not the tool is distractive, or if the teaching isn’t engaging enough 😉
We’ve been seeing bibles on electronic devices since the Franklin Planner in the late 1980s/1990s. We then went to seeing the Bible on PDAs (Bible Reader, PocketBible, etc.). And now Bibles are on smartphones (though also are on non-smartphones too). If in all that time of technological adaption that we’ve got the question in our local churches that this tech used today is somehow wrong, are we really asking the right question?
From the other side of the discussion, Romans 14 comes into play. If there’s a weakness in the faith because someone is using the mobile device instead of paper, then *teach* the faith point, and foster maturity by teaching how both the paper and digital bibles are useful and wanted by their respective audiences. Trust is the name of the economy here, and we’d do better to exchange trusting one another than fearing one another.
I agree. “Trust is the name of the economy…” indeed. My students know I hold them to a higher standard, and by trusting them, they feel empowered.
What was the Romans 14 reference you mentioned?
In Romans 14, Paul goes thru the matter of considering the strengths and weaknesses of one another in the Body. What things offend one person might not another – and usually these offenses aren’t in any way a matter of salvation, reconciliation, and redemption. Usually, they are preferences, behaviors if you will that we hold to or don’t hold to. His admonision there is to consider one another’s perspective, and do what we can to even in our perspectives to keep the unity of the faith.
Such is the lesson that mobiles/social web in church should always bring forth.
That’s what I thought you were referencing. Good stuff!
Great post, Dustin!
I really like how you called out that the printed Bible is a piece of technology on it’s own. I grew up pretty traditional and have been somewhat hesitant to use my iPhone on Sunday morning, but the YouVersion and ESV apps are so easy to use and follow along that I find myself more engaged in the sermon.
In fact I rarely use my ThinLine NIV at home and confess it’s gathering dust on the bookshelf. I still read it from time to time and will probably never completely transition to digital scripture.
I feel the same way– i’ll probably never transition to digital-only. However, I do find myself using my phone more often than my physical one (that’s actually my bible in the photo above).
For me, it’s more of a portability issue. I love my big old bible, but it doesn’t fit in my pocket.
Great article. Pen and paper can be distracting for me as well. However, wanting to check Facebook and Twitter on my iPhone/iPad can be distracting as well. That’s why I typically go “Airplane Mode” during church.
That’s a great idea! I almost wrote about that in the article, but (with YouVersion in particular) most people don’t have the most used translations downloaded to their device, so they need internet to read them.
What’s your app/translation of choice?
Youversion, with most all of the available versions downloaded already. I typically use NKJV or NLT.
That’s awesome. I go between NIV, NASB, & NLT most of the time. And if i’m in a crazy mood… AMP!
I tweet the sermon as I listen. I link to Bible passages, and hashtag in ways to get the word out to the right people.
My wife and I both use our phones in church. I use the YouVersion app to follow along with the “Live Event” and take notes. We also use our phones to tweet during the service. Our pastor even encourages it.
That’s awesome! I wish I could get a YouVersion live event going at our church. I love that capability!
And I think your pastor and I would get along really well. 😉
I think you might know him…Todd Clark at Discovery Church 🙂
Haha! Yes, I’ve known Todd for a while. We’ve never hung out, but I know for sure we’d get along very well. 😉
As soon as you mentioned the Live Event I knew it had to be Discovery 🙂
In talking with our new pastor a few months ago, I warned him that I use my phone extensively during the service, to follow along, look up cross references and take notes (Evernote rocks), and not to be offended. Heh. His sermon notes this Sunday were on his Kindle…
Whatever gets you into and keeps you in the Word is good.
Oh – and did I mention I in no way fit the “kid” definition at 52? This old dog loves the new tricks!
Haha! That made me laugh! That’s good that you made him aware of it right away.
And yes, Evernote ROCKS! Except if you’re running iOS 5 (like I am) then it doesn’t rock. I’m hoping they fix some of the bugs soon so I can get back to ROCKING on Evernote.
90% of our teens use Youversion on their phones and ipods in our ministry. I love it because we are seeing our teens in the word more often and engaging scripture in ways they haven’t in the past. I have preached not only in our youth ministry but in our adult service and have performed a wedding on my ipad as well. We had some older adults ask about the use of electronic devices during the service and our leadership stood up and said no problem they’re just reading their bibles.
That’s awesome! The pastor that married my wife and I used an iPad for the ceremony as well. And if i had an iPad, I’d definitely use it for preaching & teaching.
I’ve had the bible app for a few years. I love that I can refer to it whenever I need it. It is always with me!!
I think it’s ok to use an iPad or iPhone for taking notes during the sermon. It is so much neater than a pen and paper!
I agree Tina! BTW… have you looked into getting a Gravatar? (see the pretty blue button below) 😉
Thanks Dustin! I will look at getting a Gravatar.
As long as the Word is the Word, the medium doesn’t seem to matter. In fact, I lean anti-technology in many ways (I have a dumbphone, not a smartphone), but I am always a bit bitter when the guy next to me in Bible study is able to pull up a verse faster than I can thumb to it in my Bible.
Totally agree David. And don’t worry too much about having a dumbphone. My wife has like a 5yr old flip phone still. lol
I’ve been using digital Bibles since e-Sword on my Axim, and even dabbled with Bibles on my Palm Pilot and the Visor. Portable Bibles are an amazing tool, and I now carry a few on both my Android phone and my Archos tablet. But as with any tool, proper use is the key. Don’t use tools while distracted, make sure you don’t succumb to the temptation of email or IM or Facebook or what-have-you available on your multi-tasking device.
Indeed. Distractions can easily pop up when using a mobile device… must…fight…temptation.
I have used my iPhone for taking notes at church (using Evernote usually) for a couple of years now.
Wanted to share a funny story though. When I first started doing this we were meeting in a movie theater and I played Bass in the band (still do actually). When we finished I went and sat down for the message, pulled out my phone, and started taking notes.
I got a text from my pastor the next day and he said he had nearly fallen over laughing. Somebody in the auditorium noticed me using my phone and went to the trouble of writing the following on a response card:
“I just wanted to let you know that one of your guitar players (the one on the right, I don’t know his name) was texting during your message! I just wanted you to know”
Ha ha, that comment has prompted an adjustment in style when we say “Open your Bibles” to “Open your Bible if you have one, or you can use your smartphone or tablet, or you can see the verses up on the Screen”.
I’m a fan of both technologies, but I will say I am using the electronic one more and more.
That’s a great story! Good idea to make that clear from the pulpit.
Slam dunk, Dustin.
🙂 thanks!
As an educator I am often torn on this issue. I have a degree in educational technology so it isn’t that I am opposed to technology. I am currently doing all I can to have our church use more. But the part that worries me is the brain research (the little bit that is out there) about how digital technology effects the brain. We know that part of learning includes a tactile component that I worry about being lost as we use e-versions of any book.
But on the other hand if the connivence and usage keeps students in the Word then Praise God.
Technology only expands our ability to use the Bible. I love reading a verse, clicking around through the footnotes, looking up commentaries, seeing the original language – all in a fraction of the time (and cost) it would take me to do that with traditional printed books.
However, I think the important thing in church is to consider your environment. As some comments have already pointed out, smartphones may raise questions or concerns in other church members. Plus, it may serve as a distraction from the message. You don’t want people to leave thinking about how the preacher used an iPhone instead of thinking about the sermon or its implications.
Imagine being the pastor of a church where everyone is staring at their laps because they are watching him on the live feed of the service instead of watching him on the stage? All the while Tweeting to their friend in the pew across the isle “Amen | The pastor is #onfire today”
At the same time, I think other members in church need to remember that it’s not their place to judge why someone is on their device during a service. They don’t know whether someone is texting, using it as a bible, or perhaps checking on a sick loved one. Obviously the guy watching the game and shouting out SCORE is a bit more obvoius with his actions but them again, he has just given you information about his story that will help you connect him more with the bigger story of God.
In the case of a Pastor using it, I would say it would need to fit the message. For a Youth Pastor it’s a great tool to use occasionally to connect into their world.
Very true Loren. I’ve found that if you do it right, from the pulpit, most people won’t even know!
Dustin,
I wrote a nice long reply on your blog about this but one thing I left out was the ability to LISTEN to the word that YouVersion gives. To have my YouVersion playing as I am working along and then go back and reread things that I have questions on is a HUGE tool for me.
Agreed David! I live that feature!
Love it! You just brought back how bad the arms of the chairs in the youth building looked when I was in youth group (we didn’t bother with notepaper).
Living overseas, I opted for ipod with Skype rather than iphone, and at first I wondered if the fact that it distracted others was a problem. Now that Korea has the iphone, it’s easier to use mine in the service with a clear conscience. As someone whose devotions have exponentially improved since beginning to study my Bible on computer, I’m all for encouraging youth to use all available resources.
( :
for the record – I meant that I’ve been using Youversion on my ipod during church, not Skype.
That’s awesome! Thanks for adding tithe conversation!
Nice piece Dustin!
YouVersion is my go-to Bible. It is always with me and is way better than carrying a stack of translations, notes etc etc
At church we have been promoting YouVersion as a real tool during services etc. A number of people are using it more and more. We run YouVersion Live events each Sunday and we created our own URL shortener so that we can have a nice custom short URL which we put on the bottom of the pastor’s slides. We promote it in the service pre-roll and a graphic as the pastor comes up to speak. It is starting to gain momentum and really it was about giving people permission to use what they have in their pocket.
Whilst there are a great range of Apps for all phones, we chose YouVersion as a ‘standard’ so that we have a user-base which can support each other etc. this has worked well, rather than have a wide range of people using different apps.
My 2c worth 🙂
That sounds awesome! I want to go visit your church! And custom short URLs are fun! 🙂
Awesome Post!
Thanks George!