10 Great Android Apps for Ministry

I’ve recently jumped into the world of Android so I wanted to share some of the apps that are working great for me. It’s amazing how much computing power you can carry in your pocket.  I’ve even found myself leaving my laptop at home more because I can do so much from my phone. Here’s a quick rundown of some apps that you may find helpful. These apps are all free, although some of them require you to subscribe to a service.

1- The Bible by YouVersion

This is by far my favorite app on my phone. I use the Bible reading plans they offer, and I am constantly looking up verses. It integrates with facebook and twitter so you can share passages, and you can even contribute your thoughts on Bible passages. They also offer churches the ability to share notes and Bible verses during your services.

2- Evernote

Evernote is a great tool for taking notes. It allows you to access your notes from the web, from your phone, from your ipod, or from your windows or mac computer. I use it to collect sermon ideas, illustrations, and any other type of information that I might need later. I also use it to take pictures of whiteboards after meetings. Evernote will recognize the text within the photo and allow you to search through it.

3- Dropbox

Dropbox allows you to Sync your files between your computers and your phone. It is a quick and easy way to get photos and other files transferred to your computer from your phone, and it also allows you to quickly transfer files from your computer to your phone. I use dropbox to store files I am working on.

4- Thinking Space

I like outlining my sermons and teaching topics using mindmaps, and this is a great app for mindmapping on your phone. I have stored my sermon mindmaps in my dropbox folder so I can access them from my computer or from my phone. It works great when you want to add an idea.

5- WordPress

This doesn’t apply to everyone, but if you host a blog through WordPress, then you definitely need this app. It allows you to post new blog entries, as well as moderate comments directly from your phone.

6- Planning Center Online

Again, this doesn’t apply to everyone, but if your church uses Planning Center Online, then this is a must-have app. The app is free, but it requires that your church has a subscription to their service. We use it to schedule our band and our children’s workers, and we use it to map out our services each week.

7- Tweetdeck

The official twitter android client is nice, but for now I am sticking with tweetdeck. They still have some work to do to bring it up to the same functionality in their iPhone app, but they are definitely heading in the right direction. I love having the ability to update Facebook, twitter, and Buzz from the same app.

8- Remember the Milk

I almost forget to include Remember the Milk, that’s why I need this app on my phone. I use it to track my to-do list. I’ve created different categories ranging from who I need to call to what I plan on blogging about. The app is free, but it requires a Pro account on Remember the Milk’s website, which currently is $25 per year. I’ve been using it for several years now, so I don’t mind paying the yearly fee.

9- Kindle

Even if you don’t own a Kindle, you should get this app. Not only can you find great free books, you can also find great deals on Bible resources as well. I bought the ESV Study Bible for only $7.99 and I access it all the time from my phone. You can also highlight passages and even take notes with the app.

10- gStrings

And finally, a list for ministry wouldn’t be complete without an app to tune your guitar.

What apps have you found helpful in your ministry? What would you add to the list?