Bibles for China’s Kurt Rovenstine attended the YouVersion celebration Monday in Oklahoma City. He says, “It was a reminder to us — as a ministry that works in Bible distribution — of the importance of Bible distribution.

“It celebrated the growing desire for people to find truth and that people are searching for truth – and the Bible is a place where they’re going to find that.”

(Photo courtesy of Brooke Cagle/Unsplash)

The ceremony highlighted testimonies of individuals coming to faith through Scripture accessed digitally.

Yet, Rovenstine also underscores the reality that not everyone has access to the Bible. In China where his ministry serves, Bible apps can be controlled.

“The digital piece is a challenge, and YouVersion in most parts of China is probably not available,” says Rovenstine.

“So part of that encouragement at that celebration was also a reminder that online and digital is great, but it also can be restricted. If you don’t have it physically, it may not be available. So we’re reminded that whereas the Bible is very accessible and desired by many, it’s still a challenge.”

Pray that the one billion YouVersion downloads will result in one billion transformed lives. Pray also that more people in China and around the world get their hands on God’s Word.

Header photo: YouVersion Bible app (Photo courtesy of Priscilla du Preez/Unsplash)

From handwritten copies to smart phone access, as society changed, so too
did the means.

Today, YouVersion's Bible App means both portability and easy availability. Biblica
and Zondervan are teaming up to offer 1 million free downloads of the New
International Version (NIV) Bible. 

"Hundreds of years later, our generation has benefitted greatly from the
efforts of those who made the King James Version available," said Bobby
Gruenewald, Pastor, Innovation Leader at LifeChurch.tv, creators of YouVersion.
"We are thrilled to join in the celebration by offering free downloads of the
NIV through our partnership with Biblica and Zondervan."

The time available to download the Bible will end at 12:00 pm EST on
Tuesday, March 1.

Once downloaded, a user will be able to access the NIV anytime, anywhere–not
just when connected to the Internet.

"The NIV continues in the tradition of the King James Version by bringing
God's unchanging Word into the language of the people. Our goal at Zondervan is
to see ‘more people engaging the Bible more,' and YouVersion's Bible App helps
accomplish this purpose," said Chip Brown, Senior Vice President and Publisher
at Zondervan. "It is an outstanding resource available on nearly every mobile
device on the market, and that makes accessing God's Word as easy as making a
phone call."

As part of a year-long celebration of the 400^th King James Version
anniversary, YouVersion will be offering several unique opportunities to make
the Bible available to more people than ever before.

The online and mobile YouVersion Bible has provided a way for users to read
the best-selling book of all time in record amounts anytime and in any place.
The free Bible App is available on iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, and Android
phones, as well as any web-enabled mobile phone. 

Based on the Web site http://youversion.com,
the YouVersion Bible App was developed by the team at LifeChurch.tv. The
Edmond, Oklahoma-based church hosts tens of thousands of people each weekend
during 80 services throughout 14 locations, including Church Online.

"Now, anyone around the globe with access to a computer
and an Internet connection will be able to listen to God's Word," said
Bobby Gruenewald, LifeChurch.tv Pastor and Innovation Leader. "By making Audio Bibles available for free, we hope to remove many of the economic
and cultural obstacles that can stand in the way of people experiencing
Scripture."

Faith Comes By Hearing and LifeChurch.tv have united to
offer God's Word in audio at YouVersion.com.

"Faith Comes by Hearing's Audio Bibles are dramatized,
word-for-word Scripture recordings complete with sound effects and music,"
said Troy Carl, Faith Comes by Hearing's national director. "People can
listen to the Word of God while reading along or discussing with others through
the free online Bible at YouVersion.com."

YouVersion is a free online Bible with an emphasis on
community, collaboration and personalized content. Visitors to YouVersion can
read the Bible in different versions and languages, bookmark favorite verses,
and create an online journal to record insights or comments. With the addition
of FCBH's Audio Bible, believers can also listen to Scripture readings.

"We immediately received positive feedback about this
streaming Audio Bible integration into YouVersion.com," Carl said.

Nearly 2 million
people from over 200 nations are using YouVersion, spending over half a billion
minutes, or 1,100 years, reading God's Word.

"Users have responded very enthusiastically to the
addition of Audio Bibles on YouVersion.com and have let us know they are
spending more time in God's Word with this new feature," Gruenewald added.