pretend it’s july

BY Amanda Bible Williams

Hello, sister-friends.

Whew! Our hearts and heads are spinning from all the words and ideas exchanged over the last few days, and the first thing we want to say is a giant THANK YOU. Your support encourages us like crazy, your constructive criticism is invaluable to us, and having you by our side at this crossroads means more than you could possibly know. The fact that so many of you (tens of thousands!) care enough about this community to show up daily and weekly sincerely blows our minds. God has been gracious here. God is here.

Now. A LOT of information has been thrown at you girls over the last few days. We thought it might be helpful to do a little exercise to bring it all together in a way that makes sense. Sound good? Here goes.

Pretend it’s July.

Fast-forward your beautiful mind to four months from now. Imagine the SheReadsTruth Kickstarter campaign is over (and it was successful! Yay!) and the SRT app is now in the App Store (and it is awesome! Yay again!)

What does mean for you? What will your She Reads Truth experience look like come July?

We’ll answer this question in 3 parts.

1. Your experience at shereadstruth.com will not change.
If you prefer to read the devotionals on our web site – whether on a computer, a phone or a mobile device – you can still join in the daily devotionals just like you always have. Each time we start a new plan, you’ll have it there on your screen, totally free. Huzzah! (Amanda’s new favorite word. Sorry.)

Not only will your daily SheReadsTruth experience not be diminished, it will get even better! Success of the app will benefit the whole of the SheReadsTruth community. Think new features (pretty downloads, maybe some on-site community space?), a wider breadth of writing voices (half of our readers are single or have no children, and we want to reflect your life stage, too!), and just all around better content. Oh, and there’s this next thing, too…

2. You’ll have the lovely, FREE SheReadsTruth app!
You guys. I’ve seen the preliminary designs, and let me tell you – it makes me want to curl up on a virtual sofa and sit in the Word while. I love it. We can’t wait to share some sneak peeks with you soon!

This Bible+devotional app is being designed specifically with you in mind. It will be lovely and unique – resembling the bigger Bible apps in its function, but with a smaller, more intimate feel. If SheReadsTruth.com is our community living room, think of the SRT app as an extension of it, with big barn doors swung open wide to the outside world.

Inside, you’ll be able to:
Read the full text of the Bible in multiple translations. (Access specific verses, chapters and books, any time.)

Bookmark your spot, highlight and share passages, even make notes in the virtual margins of your mobile copy of God’s Word.

Access your camera anytime inspiration strikes you. (Pretty doodles, life-changing quotes, gorgeous sunrise? Photograph it from inside the app!)

Filter and share your photos to instagram, facebook and twitter, or save them to your camera roll.

And yes, read select SRT plans that will come pre-loaded on the app!

You can do ALL these things ANYTIME, simply by downloading the app for FREE in the App Store. It’s a beautiful, mobile, share-friendly Bible in your pocket.

But here’s the thing: It won’t just be in your pocket.

What if together we can put God’s Word in the pocket of thousands and thousands of women around the world? Fellow truth seekers, fellow daughters and mothers and sisters and friends? Many of you have told us how the SheReadsTruth community reintroduced you to God’s Word, made you feel more comfortable or even more welcome entering into the pages of Scripture. What if together we can extend this invitation even further, and invite countless more women through those big barn doors and into a safe place to encounter Jesus? What if lives can be changed through a simple piece of technology? This is the kind of thing only God can do, and this is our prayer for the SRT app. 

3. Yes, Yes and Yes.
Ok. Perhaps you want to take it a step further – You want to participate in the daily SRT devotionals, you want to download and use the free app, AND you want to experience the current, daily SRT devotionals within the context of the new, feature-rich app environment. This is where your option to pay comes in. If having all this together in one place is worth it to you, you can pay a small fee – something like $.99-$3.99, depending on the plan length – to enjoy participating in the current plan right there in the app with all those same features of reading, highlighting, sharing, photographing, etc. You’ll have the option to purchase every time, so if your schedule gets crazy and you’re not sure you want to spend the money – no worries. Just join us on the SheReadsTruth.com site instead – we don’t want finances to keep you from being a part of the community!

There’s other fun stuff, too, like push notifications to remind you read the plan at your preferred time of day. And that “grace” button Raechel mentioned for when you need a little more time, a devotional “snooze” of sorts. J The comments will be synced with the SRT site so we can all participate in daily conversation together.

We need you.

Countless numbers of you have thanked us profusely for the free content you’ve enjoyed here at SRT for nearly two years. Hundreds of you have asked how you can help. This is that moment. The Kickstarter campaign – and these 2 weeks ramping up to it – is an opportunity for us to join forces and watch God do what only He can do.

If you want to cheer us on, this is the time to cheer loudest.
If you want to give, this is the time to give generously.
If you want to move with us into the next phase of the adventure, this is it.

Let’s link arms and follow the Lord into a next chapter that only he can write.

This is His Story. May He get all the glory.

 

We love you like WHOA.
Amanda, Raechel, Hayley & Diana

 

PS – the survey is still here! PLEASE take it if you haven’t already! We want to know as much as we can about who’s reading!