Gospel Library for Android - Studying by topic

As you study the scriptures, rather than reading books chronologically, you may want to study by topic. The Gospel Library app gives you a rich set of tools for a topic-based study of the gospel. For this example, let’s say that I want to study about the topic of faith. To start my topic-based study, I’ll turn to the Study Helps to see what the topical guides, indexes, and Bible Dictionary have to say about the topic. To view the Study Helps, tap Scriptures, and then tap Study Helps. These study helps are the same Study Helps as those you find on the Scriptures menu of LDS.org. The Bible Dictionary provides definitions of topics, whereas the Topical Guide and Index explain where the topics appear in the scriptures. The Guide to the Scriptures both defines topics and lists where the topics appear in the scriptures. Let’s look at the topic of faith in the Guide to the Scriptures. To organize my study about faith, I’m going to tag each of the passages about faith that I like or find interesting. For example, I’ll highlight this second paragraph and tag it with the word “faith.” Then I’ll explore some of the references to faith. I’ll scroll down here and see what is listed. This reference about faith, hope, and charity looks interesting. I like the passage, so I’ll tag it with the keyword “faith” as well. I can click the Back button and explore other references to faith to continue my topic-based study. I can also use the app’s search feature to find all instances of the word faith in the content I’ve downloaded. I’ll tap the Search button, select Search Entire Library, and then type Faith. In contrast to using the Study Helps, keyword searches also look at content outside the scriptures. I’ve downloaded all library content, so the search will show results in the hymnbook, magazines, Handbook 2, the Faith in God books, Family Home Evening Resource Books, and other sources. For example, I’ll tap Magazines, and then tap the January 2012 Ensign, and then tap this second entry. I like this passage, so I’ll highlight it and tag it with the word faith. To see all of the passages I’ve tagged with faith, I’ll return to my Study Notebook by tapping the App Home button, and then I’ll tap Study Notebook. I’ll tap Tags, and then tap Faith. The list shows all the passages I’ve tagged with faith. As I study the passages I've collected, I'll allow my curiosity to carry my thoughts into searching whatever catches my interests. As I reflect, I might ask how these verses apply to my own life and present issues. I could ask, What is the Lord trying to emphasize here, and why. How do the people and messages here compare with other parts of the scriptures? I could also draw or sketch the events and stories as a way of increasing my understanding. While reflecting on these passages, let's suppose I discover a few insights about faith. I want to record these insights. To do this, I’ll tap the Journal Entry button and type, “Faith has a close relationship with love.” At any time, I can continue my study on LDS.org using the Notes and Journal feature. There I can edit or add journal entries, tags, notes, and highlights – and these will all sync with the app. Now it’s your turn to practice. 1. Select a topic you want to study. 2. Review the Study Helps to see how the topic is defined and used in the scriptures. 3. Search for instances of the keyword in other sources. 4. Tag passages that you find interesting. 5. Record your insights by adding journal entries.