I don’t understand what some of the words in the Bible, where can I find out what they mean?
Who are Scripture Union?
Scripture Union is a non-denominational, Christ-centred international movement, founded in 1867, working in partnership with individuals and churches across the world. Find out more about Scripture Union here.
What is WordLive?
WordLive is a website that allows you to step into a multi-media Bible reading experience and deepen your relationship with God. Find out more about WordLive here.
How is WordLive funded?
WordLive is funded by donations. It's free to access because we want to encourage as many people as possible to deepen their relationship with God through the Bible. Please consider financially supporting WordLive so that others can discover and continue to benefit from its existence. Donations can be made here.
How often should I access WordLive?
You can access WordLive as often as you like. New content is available daily and you can use as much or as little of it as you wish. For example, you could access the site in the morning and read the Pray first and the Bible verses and perhaps the main point, then come back later on in the day to watch a meditative slide show or listen to the podcast. Register on the site to subscribe to a daily email, access WordLive on your mobile and search the archive of material from WordLive and our printed Bible guides, Encounter with God, Closer to God and Daily Bread.
Why should I register?
Registering on WordLive gives you the oportunity to customise your experience of WordLive. By registering you will be able to access the search feature, sign up to the daily email and select the content you want to see, discuss the days topic with others in the forum and see content for days you missed.
How do I register?
To register on WordLive click on the 'Register' button either across the top of the page or in the left hand column. You will be guided through a simple process where you will be required to supply an email address. You must be able to receive an email to the email address you supply in order to complete the registration process. You can select to stay logged in to WordLive if you wish.
WordLive says my email address is already registered
The WordLive website is part of the Scripture Union family of websites. You may have previously registered to use our Light website or other areas, in which case your registration is already known. You can login with your email address, and if you don’t know the password you can ask for a new password to be sent to your email by clicking on “Forgot your password?” in the WordLive login area. Once logged in you can update your details by going to “Edit my Profile”.
How do I change the Bible version?
Once you have registered on WordLive, you can access your preferences and select which Bible version appears when you access today's content.
How do I sign up for the daily email?
Once you have registered on WordLive, you can access your preferences and sign up to the daily email and select which Bible version appears when you access today's content.
How do I use the search function and what does the star rating mean?
Once you have registered on WordLive, you can search past an present content of WordLive and three years worth of material from our printed Bible guides, Encounter with God, Closer to God and Daily Bread. Material from WordLive is given three stars as this will include multimedia elements, material from printed Bible guides is given two stars. You can filter your results by the type of activity, for example, audio and video material or Closer to God note or by themes such as baptism, beauty and worry. Search results are ordered by relevence.
What do the colours behind the activity titles mean?
There are three distinct approaches in WordLive. The Study approach is pink and brings theological material to engage with the culture and context of the Bible passage. The Reflective approach aims to encourage users to engage with the Bible passage on a personal level and hear what God has to communicate through it. The colour for Reflective is green. The Live approach is denoted by a blue bar. Material in the Live approach will help you to apply the teaching to your life.
What do the icons mean?
The icons tell you the type of content in each item. Here's a list of all the icons you will see and what they mean:
| Prayer based activity | | Bible passage |
| Watch a video | | Listen to audio |
| Group discussion | | Interactive activty |
| View an image | | |
| | | | |
Who creates the material?
The material is created by a team of writers, editors and freelancers.
Can I download the material to use in my church?
All of the material on WordLive is copyright of Scripture Union, unless stated otherwise. Please recommend WordLive to your church and show them if you have internet access. The material is not available to download but if you would like to use a specific item please contact Scripture Union's rights and permissions manager using our 'contact us' form. Please start your enquiry 'WordLive rights and permissions'.
Where can I purchase music I have heard on WordLive?
For each audio track there is a link to the website of the record company who distribute it. You should find details of how to order the track from there.
What software do I need to see everything on WordLive?
The entire site, and a large majority of the content provided, can be accessed using a standard Internet browser such as Internet Explorer. However, some of the multimedia content may require additional software. When this is the case, you'll get a message telling you what you need to install and a link to get it for free. This additional software is standard to a lot of websites so the chances are you’ll already have them installed anyway.
Many of the videos and the carousel navigation for choosing daily activities require Adobe Flash player. If you can already view this type of content, then you already have the Flash player installed, but if not you can download it from free here. Some videos require the QuickTime plug-in. This is also free of charge and easy to install. This can be downloaded here. You should be able to listen to audio if you have Windows Media player or another type of MP3 player such as Real Player installed on your machine.
Why can't I hear the songs?
In order to hear the songs or any sort of audio content, you need to have a piece of MP3 software installed on your computer. Most Windows based computers will have Windows Media Player installed as standard and this will allow you to hear the songs. If you don’t see any controls (such as play, fast forward and rewind) when you open an audio activity, then you may not have this installed. If this is the case, you can download Windows Media Player for free here.
Why can't I see the video?
There are two types of video – Flash animations and standard video clips. In order to watch the Flash animations, you will need the Adobe Flash player which you can download for free here. To watch the videos, you will need the QuickTime plug-in installed. This is also free and can be downloaded here.
Why can't I see the carousel?
There are two types of navigation to guide you through the day’s offering – a carousel of icons constantly revolving, allowing you to select activities in any order, and a standard list based navigation, where you will see the activity icons and names presented in a more traditional fashion. If you see the standard navigation, this means you don’t have the Adobe Flash player installed. This is a free download and can be found here. The Flash player is also required for a number of other activities so would be a worthwhile download.
What is a podcast?
Podcasting lets you automatically receive the latest audio offering from WordLive.You need to "subscribe" to receive a podcast, rather like you might subscribe to a magazine and get it delivered each week. An important difference is that podcasts are free, and you can stop receiving the files at any time. In order to sign up for a podcast you need an internet connection and a piece of podcast software which is usually available free of charge. This software can check WordLive for new content and automatically download them for you.
How do I subscribe to the podcast?
How you subscribe will vary depending on which software you have chosen. Three popular pieces of software are iTunes, Juice and Doppler.
You can also subscribe using a web-based “feed reader” such as My Yahoo or Google Reader. These work in a similar way to the podcast software but are online rather than application-based and you need to have an account - they're usually free and easy to set-up but you will need an email address. To subscribe the first thing you need to do is add the "feed" of the podcast to your software (or online reader). The feed is where the software will go to each time it wants to check for a new edition. Find out more about subscribing to the WordLive podcast here.
What is a Christian?
Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian, nor does trying hard to be nice. It’s a matter of the heart. According to Jesus, his followers are people who have a personal relationship with him. Knowing about Jesus simply isn’t enough. As you read the Bible you come face to face with the claims Jesus made about himself. Most importantly, Jesus says he’s the Son of God – with authority over each one of us – and we need to consider how we are going to respond.
The world is full of people who haven’t found what they’re looking for. There’s something missing. A restless feeling inside. Jesus teaches that real satisfaction and purpose come when we put him at the centre of our lives. The separation between us and God that was caused by our sinful natures can be ended when we understand the mission of his Son who came to reconcile us through the ultimate penalty – his own innocent life given for us, the guilty.
Jesus makes this offer to all of us: ‘I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him’ (Revelation 3:20).
How do I become a Christian?
Being a Christian involves a relationship, a growing friendship with Jesus as a person, an experience of his love and power. This encounter with the living God is what real Christianity is all about. Talk to a Christian friend or find a local church and tell them you are interested in knowing more about becoming a Christian.
How do I know the Bible is true?
There are always plenty of people trying to dispute the validity of the Bible. But whether it’s trustworthy or not is such an important issue that it’s worth investigating it yourself and settling the matter rather than being swayed by other people’s contradictory opinions. The Bible makes sense of the world, provides an explanation for what has gone wrong and gives a blueprint for change. And this blueprint works. Millions of people have read the Bible and found that everything it said about human nature was true about them. The Bible does go on to describe the antidote to all this – a clean sheet, wrong things forgiven and a new power for living. Why not read John's gospel and keep asking yourself, ‘What response do I need to make if this is true?’ Ask a Christian you know to explain any bits you can’t understand. Read more about becoming a Christian in It makes sense, avaiable here.
How do I find a Church to attend?
If you've never been to church before, check out churches in your area at www.findachurch.co.uk. Visit a few before you decide which one you prefer.
How do I give my feedback and offer suggestions for WordLive?
We would to hear about your experience of WordLive. There will be a formal questionnaire but until we have that sorted please email us using the 'contact us' page.
Why do I get an error message when I access WordLive with my mobile phone?
Some mobile phones are having difficulty accessing the WordLive mobile site. This is due to the browsers in the phone. You can download a browser that does work from Opera. All details can be found on their site here.
Is there a syllabus for WordLive and can I see a copy?
Yes, there is a WordLive syllabus and you can download a copy here:
2008 WordLive syllabus
If you use a web based email service, there should be some junk email options. If you can find a 'safe senders list', be sure to add wordlive@scriptureunion.org.uk
In WordLive we try to explain as many ‘religious’ words as possible. However, we may miss one or two. If this is the case you could look for them on the EasyEnglish Bible Dictionary, an online dictionary that explains all things (well a lot) biblical.