100 Million Bibles For The World

For a year now, I’ve been writing this column on what technology trends you as a Christian business leader should know about. This quarter, I decided to take a deep dive into one of my favorite technology products, and one that I assume many of our readers use on a daily basis: YouVersion, or as it’s more commonly known, the Bible App. The Bible App is a free mobile Bible that can be installed on almost any smartphone or tablet. On July 7, 2013 the app hit its 100 millionth download. I recently sat down with Bobby Gruenewald, Pastor and Innovation Leader at LifeChurch.tv and a founder of YouVersion, to talk about the significance of the 100 million milestone, innovation in The Church, and how this organization is using technology to impact the world for Christ.

1. TwoTen

YouVersion is one of my favorite apps. I use it for my quiet time every morning. But for those who don’t, what’s your pitch? Why is YouVersion a better Bible engagement experience than my printed Bible?

1. Bobby Gruenewald

When we first got started, we didn’t have a mobile app – we started with a website. We thought that the website would help us engage with Scripture more, but the reality was that it didn’t change the way we engaged with the Bible. We were almost ready to shut YouVersion down when we decided to try it as a mobile website in early 2008. I think we were on Blackberrys at the time.

1. TwoTen

Oh, wow.

1. Bobby Gruenewald

Yeah, exactly. But very naturally, we engaged with the Bible more often and more consistently. The main thing that changed was the proximity of the Bible to our lives. We carry these devices with us all day, all night, and that makes a difference in terms of engagement.

1. TwoTen

Is there any feature of the Bible App that you guys have created that just isn’t possible with a printed Bible?

1. Bobby Gruenewald

The ability to easily share a piece of Scripture with a few taps of your finger. You can’t replicate that experience with a printed Bible.

1. TwoTen

YouVersion basically runs as a start-up within LifeChurch.tv. That’s interesting and seemingly rare. How does that work? Are there culture clashes between “startup-world” and “church world”?

1. Bobby Gruenewald

YouVersion is a ministry of LifeChurch.tv and it’s always been that way. We set it up that way with intention. LifeChurch.tv is unique in that there’s quite a bit of start-up culture amongst the church staff. The same types of things I learned as an entrepreneur in start-ups played out really well when I joined the church as a pastor.

1. TwoTen

How is YouVersion different from other ministries at LifeChurch.tv?

1. Bobby Gruenewald

The only thing that makes YouVersion unique from other ministries of LifeChurch.tv is the fact that there are outside donors that give specifically to YouVersion to accelerate the growth of the app.

1. TwoTen

You guys just hit your 100 millionth download of the Bible App. What was going through your mind the moment you hit the 100 millionth download?

1. Bobby Gruenewald

My first thought was that I might actually miss it. Everyone was distracting me and I was worried I might be looking away when the counter rolled over to 100 million. The concept of 100 million downloads was ridiculous when we first got started. If someone had told me that we would hit 100 million downloads someday, I would have said, “I really don’t believe it.” I wish I could say I had the faith to believe that at the time. My faith–our faith as a ministry–has been strengthened by this experience. Our faith has grown to believe this is only the beginning of what God will do through YouVersion. The potential market for YouVersion is much much greater than 100 million downloads.

"When we hit 100 million downloads, there was a brief moment of celebration, but a sense that this is simply a foundation to build on."Bobby Gruenewald

1. TwoTen

How do you see YouVersion evolving from 100-200 million downloads?

1. Bobby Gruenewald

Something we have been working on for quite some time, which you will see in the next major release, is the ability to experience the Bible in the context of trusted relationships. Right now, the Bible App is very much a personal app. Going forward, we will create a private social network that’s focused on the Bible, that will be intentionally designed to force you to select a small group of people you are actually friends with. You will have the opportunity to follow the activity of your friends: the bookmarks they make, the notes they post, etc.

1. TwoTen

It’s sort of an activity stream of Bible engagement.

1. Bobby Gruenewald

Exactly. We believe it will drive more of a viral effect for the growth of the app. More importantly, we believe it will create more of a vortex effect for engagement. By seeing that your friend is reading their Bible every day, we believe you will be more inspired to do the same.

1. TwoTen

Aside from YouVersion, what other innovative uses of technology have you led at LifeChurch.tv?

1. Bobby Gruenewald

One thing we are really focused on is the church online platform (churchonlineplatform.com). This was designed from the ground up to be helpful for churches. There are 4,000 churches using the platform. Another thing we are working on, that we have yet to release, is technology that helps with the giving transaction experience in churches. The user experience is far too complicated for most church giving. You can make the case that The Church (capital C emphasized) is the largest non-profit in the world. There’s no reason why innovation shouldn’t come from within The Church, especially with regard to giving. We should be the leaders in that space.

1. TwoTen

Any predictions on when we might see one billion digital Bibles downloaded?

1. Bobby Gruenewald

The first time we ever went public with a download goal was the 100 million milestone. We are careful not to make predictions past one year out. I can tell you that I don’t see the billionth download this year.

To download the Bible App on your smartphone or tablet, visit the following link or search “YouVersion” in the app store:

www.bible.com/app

For more information on LifeChurch.tv, visit:

www.lifechurch.tv