My Top 5 FREE 'Must Have' Disciple Making Apps

Well, with a new year and new season, comes a renewed focus and a chance to reset...at least in part (as a friend put it). And in this time of uncertainty, it seems more than ever, empowering and equipping the everyday Christian, in their everyday life, to live a lifestyle of disciple-making, is more important and relevant than perhaps ever before.

The 'how' is one thing, but then the 'what' is actually quite simple.

Just as a carpenter has a tool belt that they put on at each job, and wear until the job is complete.

So we need to equip everyday Christians with a tool belt for their everyday life.

we need to equip everyday Christians with a tool belt for their everyday life.

That wherever they go, whatever they are doing, they have the tools needed for the job.

There are incredible resources and training out there that will help everyone with this. If you want to find out more about some of these that we have identified, and how we are working towards this, then go to our website or contact us, and we would love to chat further.

However, I'm not sure if you are aware of it or not...but we have an incredible tool that, for a large portion of adults in the world, will give them access to almost all the tools and training that they will need. It lives in many of our pockets, it goes everywhere that we go, in fact, as a society, we are addicted to it and use it way more than we should. There is a number of books, articles and research that suggest this, a simple search on the internet will tell you the same story. Here is a short, easy article, or a great book (John Mark Comer's book 'Practicing the Way' is the basis of our level 1 Formation Leadership Module, and also comes with a lot of resources) that will help you delve into the rabbit hole if you would like to journey down it.

So what exactly am I talking about?

Well, cutting straight to the chase, empowering and equipping everyday Christians with a handful of specific apps that they understand, know how to use, and the purpose of each will go a long way to helping a disciple-maker to multiply in simple, reproducible ways.

Empowering and equipping everyday Christian's with a handful of specific apps that they understand, know how to use and the purpose of each, will go a long way to helping a disciple maker to multiply in simple, reproducible ways.

So, whether you are reading this at the beginning of a new year, a new season or perhaps just in a time of uncertainty, I hope this encourages you to think through the simple, reproducible tools that you can carry with you everywhere you go, to give you focus and intentionality in your disciple-making journey.

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So here are my 5 must-have FREE apps for everyday disciple-making.

5. YouVersion Bible

First things first, the Bible HAS to be an active, living and integral part of all disciple-makers' lives. And although I am personally a fan of the old kinesthetic way of reading the Bible (with an old-fashioned paper one in my hands), to have a free Bible in multiple languages, with videos, devotions and more, at the tips of my fingers. It is a must so that the Bible is easily accessible for anyone you may be connecting with.

With already over 1 billion unique devices around the world using it, many of you who are currently reading this may well already have the app on your phone.

If you would like to find out more about this app, please follow this link.

4. The Pause app - the everyday examen

This is perhaps for some a little left field, but I feel it is an acknowledgement of the ridiculously fast-paced world that we live in today and the need to find ways to resist being swept away in it all. As John Mark Comer's book title suggests, we need to relentlessly eliminate the hurry in our lives. And for that, an app like the 1-minute Pause can help. Based on John Eldredge's books, 'Get Your Life Back' and 'Resilient', this app helps to guide you through anywhere from 1-minute to 10-minute pauses that can be used at any point throughout your day. The subtlety in embedding this multiple times throughout your day, it could be as simple as doing it before walking into work or school, and then repeating it prior to walking back into the home, shifts your focus in the moment, and perhaps more importantly, shifts your business and hurry over time. In other words, this practice scattered throughout the day can help to create calm and quiet yourself, create space for God, and remind us that we have a relationship with God, needing to be nurtured, and that journey in the everyday.

3. Lectio 365

Daily devotional time is an important rhythm to initiate in your own life and that of those you are discipling. Inspired by Lectio Divina, a way of meditating on the Bible that has been used for centuries by Christians. Lectio 365 aims to help individuals encounter God and shape their life by praying the Bible every day. For this, you will be guided through a process called 'PRAY';

'P': PAUSE to be still

'R': REJOICE with a Psalm and REFLECT on the Bible.

'A': ASK God to help us and others, and...

'Y': YIELD to His will in our lives.

More recently, they have added a rhythm of nightly prayers that has been inspired by the ancient Christian practice called the Examen, and they now have Lectio for Families (check it out HERE ).

In this fast-paced world, slowing down to read and meditate on the scriptures is seemingly a lost art form, and yet here, we have a free app that not only helps this become a reality in your life again but your family's life as well.

2. Bible Project

I had been looking forward to them creating an app, and I am pleased to say that they have (a little while ago, although many I chat to still aren't aware of it), and it is SO GOOD! This is a great tool for everyone, but particularly today's younger generations to grow in their biblical literacy in an interactive, engaging and insightful way. Whether you prefer a short video, a podcast, or blogs, there is something for you. Perhaps you like exploring individual books of the bible, topics, the grand narrative or something else...well, it's here for you! This is not my first stop, yet, but as the content grows and diversifies, it has become one of my must-haves! At some point, when you are discipling individuals, they are going to be engaging in studies and content beyond what you are doing with them and for that, this is a great resource to have and familiarise yourself with. They are not afraid to tackle some of the harder and more complicated topics, and do a great job of not only explaining how it fits in God's overall story, but God's story that points to Jesus.

If you haven't checked them out, make sure you do!

1. MyFriends Network

When thinking of a disciple-making app, I keep coming back to the MyFriends Network app. It is a web-based app, so you won't find it in your app stores, but it is easily accessible and user-friendly. It has the advantage of being accessible in multiple languages and has everything you need for disciple-making. Whether that be a simple gospel message or the ability to form a group of non-believers and explore Jesus' life together, it has it all. In fact, it has up to 3.5 - 4 years' worth of content for a group to journey through on a weekly basis, all focusing on God's story, Jesus and the early church in an easily facilitated format. Not only this, but the various sessions are designed to use a Discovery Bible Study style of facilitating a group, to help someone journey from not yet believing in Jesus to being a trained disciple-maker sent out to multiply. It really makes it easy to not only make disciples but form communities of disciple-makers wherever you are. And it is this simple, reproducible and disciple-making foundational approach that is why it is my go-to disciple-making app!

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My encouragement for you is to explore these and other apps that you can actively use as tools in your disciple-making journey. If you can integrate everyday apps into your journey with someone, you can help to create simple, reproducible methods of multiplication.

Which of the 5 apps do you currently have and find most helpful?

• You Version Bible app
• The Pause app
• Lectio 365 app
• The Bible Project app

See All Options

This article was written and created by Andrew Hodgson © 2025.

Published by The Emerging Leaders Program, 2025.