I’ve learned a lot after using an iPad as a pastor for almost two years.
Recently, I have found myself working almost exclusively on the iPad. It works great! In the last week, I’ve been asked three times how I utilize the iPad as a Pastor. Here are some power user tips:
- Get a stylus. You can’t write fast or accurate with your finger. There are not many good ones out there. Save yourself some heartache and time…get this one.
- Get a good case. Many to choose from. I recommend this one.
- Get a bluetooth keyboard. It will speed up your workflow significantly. The iPad on screen keyboard works ok when you have to, but for message prep, writing, etc you need a real keyboard. There are a ton of awesome ones out there, but I use this one.
Here are some apps that help me Pastor Revolution Church effectively. I have listed these in order of importance / usage for me:
Bible – Team Digerati from LifeChurch.tv built one of the best apps ever. These guys are legit. And so is their app. I use it to read the Bible every day. Or sometimes I let it read to me. I keep notes on it, follow reading plans and even tweet out scriptures from it.
Notability – This is the most helpful app I have. It is cheap and extremely effective. This app lets me integrate handwriting, PDF annotation, typing and even voice recording. I use it for all meetings, mindmapping, creative brainstorming, capturing ideas and presenting information. All of my notes area auto-synced to dropbox.
I also use notability for my final notes on Sundays that I preach from…I don’t actually preach from the app (I use iBooks for that) but I do all my final edits and notations on the fly in Notability.
Evernote – A close second best app. Seriously, if you aren’t on Evernote yet, something is wrong with you. To read about how to use Evernote click here.
Evernote is where I keep EVERYTHING. It is my virtual filing cabinet. Evernote allows me to have a paperless office. I even signed up for the premium, paid service. Evernote is great (especially the paid version) because it syncs to the cloud, meaning I can access anything on my iPad, Android phone or computer. Every piece of information, every file, every sermon mindmap…its all, always at the tip of my fingers. Power tip for Evernote: in the settings tell your iPad which notebooks you want to be able to access offline. Especially if you have a wifi only iPad like me.
Dolphin Browser – The stock safari browser that comes on the iPad is junk. Get this now! I just wish they’d make a desktop version.
Hootsuite – This app let’s me rock Twitter. I can schedule tweets to post in the future, follow certain lists of people or follow a particular hashtag.
1Password – Man, pastoring a church means you have to keep track of a TON of passwords. Enter 1Password. It keeps track of all account info, passwords, ftp logins, servers, and more. And it keeps them secure. I just have to remember one password and it takes me to them all! I also store all of our tax exempt info here, which is huge. Almost every business gives you some sort of account number to use for tax exempt and most of them put it on a little card. My wallet would look like something out of a seinfeld episode if I had to keep up with all of those. 1Password lets me save all of that in my iPad (and sync to the desktop and phone via Dropbox).
Logmein Ignition – Expensive but will save your life in a pinch. This app allows me to just leave the laptop / computer at the office. I can login to my computer via the iPad from anywhere in the world and use my desktop. I don’t use it a ton, but when I do, its worth it.
GV Mobile + – If you don’t know what Google Voice is, you need to start using it right away. This app just lets me effectively utilize google voice on my iPad. When I was in Haiti last week, this allowed me to text message my team on my iPad for free…all you need is wifi.
Dropbox – The best way to store collaborative files and share folders in the cloud. First, go here and get your free Dropbox Account. Then go get the app and you will be up and running!
PenUltimate – I use this for quick note taking. Mainly at meetings, conferences, coaching sessions or roundtables. Its perfect for when you just want to write fast.
Revolution Church – Sorry…shameless plug! Seriously though, having our own app has been a gamechanger. I’ll do a separate post on it soon.
Google – This app has tons of google apps servies built in to it but I really only use this for Google Docs access and viewing. Google Docs is where we keep any collaborative documents at Revolution Church. This isn’t really that great for editing docs, but it rocks for viewing them on the go. All team reports, church signups, attendance tracking, etc is on Google Docs.
Skitch – This is how I annotate and approve all design / marketing related work. It lets me easily point things out on documents that need to be changed or worked on. And, best of all, it integrates easily with Evernote.
Planning Center Online – This is how our REV Creative team and I program every service down to the minute. A must have app and a must have service for any church.
WordPress – This is how we run the entire Revolution Church website. I can view website stats and make just about any edit that I need to make. I also use it right here for zakwhite.com.
DocuSign Ink – I use this to sign and return documents via email. Usually PDF docs.
Feedler Pro – I use this to read all of my RSS feeds that are stored on google reader. I like it the best because I can click one button and send the entire content of any post straight to evernote.
Lemon – These guys are new on the scene and killing it when it comes to an easy way to keep / track receipts. If you lose receipts all the time, get this app. (for the record, I don’t lose receipts much, but I can see where this would help people who do)
