Reading the Bible is one of my greatest pleasures in life. Before my conversion in 2001, I remember trying to read the Bible and it would seem like I was reading a foreign language. Nothing made sense. Now with the help of the Holy Spirit the text just flows out like a song and it speaks to my heart.
For many people, reading the Bible can be difficult. We find that this is true for some of our congregation members (especially those new the faith). Each week we try to prepare people for worship and give them tools to strengthen their faith. Posting Bible verses through social media is one of the ways we shepherd our people. Some of the avenues of social media we use are Facebook, Twitter, and Constant Contact. Now we are using a tool that has been out there since 2007 called YouVersion.com. YouVersion.com is a free online Bible that Lifechurch.tv developed. It brings the Bible to life for people online.
YouVersion.com is a social tool in and of itself. You can create notes for the community, you can “like” other people’s notes, you can use one of their Bible reading plans, you can find friends and create groups, and you can share. As the communications director at Cypress UMC, I love being able to share information (especially the Bible).
Here is one of the ways we connect people to the Bible. We always post the scripture for the upcoming Sunday on the front page of the website.
When people click through, they are then connected to YouVersion.com.
We always have questions to consider for the upcoming sermon. People can “tweet” or “like” the notes and even share. We post the scripture on our Facebook page and in our weekly E-News (through Constant Contact).
With the YouVersion.com tool we have been able to bring the Bible to life for many who have trouble connecting to the text. We are finding that we are not only shepherding our people, but others who are connecting through our YouVersion.com notes.
- What are some ways that you connect people to the Bible through social media?
- Have you used YouVersion.com in other ways that were not shared here in the post?
3 Comments
What are some ways that you connect people to the Bible through social media?
Besides our Bible study and read-through-the-Bible-in-a-year web site (www.biblereferenceguide.com) we have a group on Facebook where members post scriptures to encourage each other. I've started posting some scriptures on Google Plus where there is way less obvious interest in what God has to say – but I'm sowing, any how.
Have you used YouVersion.com in other ways that were not shared here in the post?
No, I've never heard of YouVersion. My emphasis has been to spread God's word socially and seriously!
Glad you are using Google +. I haven't used that before. My husband has invited me to join. I will check it out.
Would you clarify the sentence "My emphasis has been to spread God' word socially and seriously!"? I am not sure I am understanding you.
Thanks Nancy for your comment
I looked at YouVersion but haven't really set anything up for it. We just started a blog and are really in the early stages of building a social media presence … but this is definitely worth thinking about!