Quite often as a pastor I get asked for recommendations for good devotional helps. Â In fact, I was asked about this again this past Sunday, so I thought I would I’d mention of few of the ones that I personally use. Â Although there are many great resources available, there are several that I use on a regular basis that have helped me tremendously.
Bible Reading – Reading my Bible daily is a must, but I don’t just want to read my Bible, I want to digest it. Â To do this I use two different items together. Â First, I have the YouVersion Bible app on my iPad. Â This gives me access to many different versions of the Bible, and also the ability to select a Bible reading plan.
Secondly, the Bible reading plan I am using the Life Journal Reading Plan.  This is a one year plan that if you read through by itself it would be spectacular, but I try to follow the Life Journal SOAP method to reading scripture.  S = pick a scripture from the daily reading that stands out to you.  O = observe what that scripture is saying.  A = apply that scripture to my life.  P = pray that God would help me to live that scripture out.  You can find more out about Life Journal method, and even order a print edition of a Life Journal if the electronic route isn’t for you, by visiting their website at http://www.lifejournal.cc/
Prayer – Just as important as reading my Bible is spending time in prayer. Â To bring focus to my prayer time I have been using the 7:14 Prayer app. Â This handy little app gives you a quick devotional to read for the day, gives you several items to pray for from around the world, and allows you to create your own prayer lists to pray through each day. Â It even lets you see in real time where else in the US the app is being used by people to pray. Â The best part about this app is that it is free.
Scripture Memory – Finally, I try to memorize scripture.  I have tried dozens of different scripture memory systems, but my favorite is the Fighter Verses put out by Desiring God.  You can get a print edition of all the verses, but again there is a great iPhone/iPad app .  Fighter Verse’s are laid out as a 5 year plan where you memorize one scripture per week.  One verse may not seem like much, but that is 52 Bible verses in a year, and I will venture to guess that 52 verses is far more than most people do in a year.
These are some of the resources I use, but again I know that there are many great devotional resources out there.  What are you using?
Thanks for the useful information on some great resources! Glad to have a tech-savvy pastor!