I don’t know if you are like me, but I have a difficult time staying true to some of the basic principles of living life as a Christian, namely, reading my Bible. With the demands of the day and modern technology distracting me, the idea of picking up a physical book with real pages seems so foreign to me. There’s also the issue of a time commitment. Sure, I can binge-watch three TV shows in one sitting without hesitation, but the idea of committing to a regular Bible study time seems overwhelming to me.

However, I know that when I “sacrifice” some time to read the Bible and pray, I do feel closer to God, I have a greater peace and a stronger direction for my life.

Our world is filled with various voices from TV, social media and the internet fighting for our attention and it becomes easy to not hear that “still small voice” – the only one that matters. So, I’m determined to start again with a new plan.

A few weeks ago I was approached to give a review of the new Life Essentials Interactive Study Bible from Lifeway Christian Resources and I think this is just what I need to get my life back on track.

Featuring the Christian Standard Bible translation, this Bible is easier to read and understand than other translations. But that is just the beginning. This bible also embraces today’s technology making each reading a truly interactive experience. Keep your phone handy as you’re going to need it for your studies.

The Life Essentials Study Bible features 1,500 life principles that are found throughout the Bible and are written by Dr. Gene Getz. This was no simple task. It took seven years for this renowned Bible teacher to complete his work on this project. In addition to all of the written material, every life principle in the book is explained further with video teachings from Getz. When you read, you’ll come across a QR code to scan with your phone and the teaching that matches what you just read appears. Each video teaching is fairly short but in all, this study system features over 250 hours of videos!

Getz is not a showman. He shares truth from his heart and is very pleasant to watch and listen to. And He know what he’s talking about. Dr. Gene Getz is a graduate of Moody Bible Institute and Rocky Mountain College. He has earned advanced degrees from Wheaton Graduate School and New York University. He served as a professor at Moody and Dallas Theological Seminary and then became a church planting pastor, launching the Fellowship Bible Church movement. He is heard daily on radio in a 2-minute feature entitled Bible Principles. To top it off, Dr. Getz has also authored over 60 books.

As for the Bible itself, The Christian Standard Bible describes itself as presenting “the truth of God’s Word with accuracy and clarity for today’s readers, equipping them for lifelong discipleship.” It was created using optimal equivalence, a translation philosophy that pursues both linguistic precision to the original languages and readability in contemporary English.

The Life Essentials Study Bible also contains:

• Two-color interior design
• Smyth-sewn binding
• Presentation page
• Two-column text
• Topical subheadings
• Black-letter text
• 9-point type
• Textual footnotes
• Concordance
• Full-color maps