Android: Friends

The Bible repeatedly reminds us that we need relationships with trustworthy people. You need close Friends who’ll encourage, inspire, challenge, love, and pray for you. And they need you to do the same for them.

We've updated the Bible App's "Friends" feature with security in mind. The new process helps you find specific friends more accurately and efficiently by reducing the number of search results, which previously left the community vulnerable to spam.

Add Friends

1. Select You (Profile Picture or Initial) from the Home screen, then Friends (under your name).
2. Select Accept to add them to your list or Ignore if you don’t want to add them.
   They won’t be notified that their request was declined until they search your name again.
3. Top: select Add Friends. The Add Friends screen gives you five ways to add new Friends:
   1. Search for friends who have a YouVersion account.
      1. Select 🔍, type a friend’s YouVersion account-associated email address, and Search for it.
      2. Select Add next to any friends you want to join in the Bible App.
      They’ll see your request in their Friend Requests.
   2. Invite friends from your device’s Contacts. Ensure their contact includes the email address associated with their YouVersion account, not just a phone number.
      1. Select Contacts or Connect with Contacts.
         To get contact suggestions for the first time, the Bible App may request access to them.
      2. Select Add next to any friends you want to join in the Bible App (only contacts with a YouVersion account will appear).
   3. Invite friends from your Facebook account. Ensure they have their Facebook account linked to their YouVersion account or have their Facebook email address associated with their YouVersion account.
      1. Select Facebook or Connect with Friends next to the Facebook logo.
         If it’s the first time, you’ll be prompted to sign in on Facebook on the web. You can select a name and view their profile to ensure your request is being sent to the correct person.
      2. Follow the prompts.
   4. Request friendships from people on your Suggested Friends list.
      1. Select Add next to any friends you want to join in the Bible App.
   5. Add Friends by scanning their QR code.
      1. Select Share My Profile at the bottom.
      2. Select the Scan tab at the top.
      3. Scan and add the friend.

Accept or Decline a Friend Request

1. Select You (Profile Picture or Initial) from the Home screen, then Friends (under your name).
2. Select Accept to add them to your list or Ignore if you don’t want to add them.

When a friend request is received, a red dot appears on the notification bell on the Home screen. Tap the bell to see the request, tap it to open, and then accept or ignore.

Remove a Friend

1. Select You (Profile Picture or Initial) from the Home screen, then Friends (under your name).
2. Select the Friend you want to remove.
3. Top right: select ︙, Unfriend.
4. Select Unfriend to remove this Friend.
   Or
   Tap on the screen outside the drop-down list to cancel.

Adjust Friend Notifications

1. Bottom right: select You or the notification bell icon at the top. Then tap the Settings gear icon, then either Email Notifications or Push Notifications.
2. Under the Friends section, switch each Friend event to On or Off, as desired.
3. Top left: select ←.