Account Access and Onboarding

Your GospelGrasp account keeps you signed in and connects your saved work to the right person. The first-time walkthrough then introduces the main reading and study choices before you begin.

What account access and onboarding do

Before the main app opens, GospelGrasp checks whether you already have a valid sign-in. If you do not, you can:

Sign in with an existing account.
Create a new account.
Request a password-reset link.
Use Face ID or Touch ID after a successful password sign-in on that device.

After a new account signs in for the first time, GospelGrasp presents a multi-part walkthrough. It introduces Search, Bible translations, GospelGrasp’s Scripture colors, original-language word help, and verse study tools.

When you might use this

When you open GospelGrasp for the first time.
When you have signed out and need to sign in again.
When you are using GospelGrasp on another device.
When you have forgotten your password.
When GospelGrasp temporarily locks sign-in after too many attempts.
When you want to choose your starting Bible translation and study aids.

Where to find it

When GospelGrasp starts, it briefly shows the GospelGrasp logo, the words Read. Understand. Remember., and a progress bar while it prepares the app. It then opens the Sign In screen if you do not have a usable session.

The Sign In screen includes:

Email and Password fields.
The Sign In button.
Forgot Password?
Create Account
Sign in with Face ID or Sign in with Touch ID, when available.

The onboarding walkthrough appears automatically after sign-in when the current account has not already completed or skipped it.

How to access your account

Create an account

From the Sign In screen, tap Create Account.
Enter your name in Name.
Enter your email address in Email.
Enter a password in Password.
Enter the same password in Confirm Password.
Select the checkbox confirming that you’re at least 13 and consent to GospelGrasp processing your study data. Your study data may reflect your religious beliefs, so the app asks for this permission directly.
Review the linked Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Creating the account means you agree to both.
Tap Create Account.

If registration succeeds, GospelGrasp checks the new session and opens the main app. The onboarding walkthrough should then appear for the new account.

You can tap Already have an account? Sign In to return without creating an account.

Current limitation of the Name field

The current iPhone and iPad registration screen asks for a name, but the app does not include that name when it creates the account. Entering a name in this field currently has no effect. Your email address and password are used to create the account.

Enter the email address used for your GospelGrasp account.
Enter your password.
Tap Sign In, or press Go on the keyboard while the Password field is active.

After a successful sign-in, GospelGrasp opens the main app. It also saves the credentials in protected storage on that device so Face ID or Touch ID can be offered later.

If another GospelGrasp account was previously used on the same device, GospelGrasp removes that previous account’s local content before the new account opens. This prevents one person from seeing another person’s notes, highlights, reading progress, or sermons.

Face ID or Touch ID can appear only when:

The device supports it and it is set up in iOS or iPadOS.
You previously signed in successfully with your email and password on that device.
The saved credentials have not been cleared by signing out.

When those conditions are met, GospelGrasp may show the device’s biometric prompt automatically when the Sign In screen opens. You can also tap Sign in with Face ID or Sign in with Touch ID.

If the biometric check or the saved sign-in fails, GospelGrasp shows Biometric authentication failed. You can still enter your email and password.

Request a password-reset link

From the Sign In screen, tap Forgot Password?
Enter your account email address.
Tap Send Reset Link, or press Go on the keyboard.
Check your email for the password-reset link.
Tap Back to Sign In when you are ready to return.

For privacy, GospelGrasp shows the same success message whether or not the email address belongs to an account. If no message arrives, check that you entered the correct address and look in your spam or junk folder.

After too many sign-in attempts, GospelGrasp may show Account locked. Try again in number seconds. The remaining time counts down on the screen, and the Sign In button remains unavailable until the countdown ends.

The account service determines the length of the wait. Let the countdown finish before trying again. If you are not sure of the password, use Forgot Password? instead of continuing to guess.

How to use the first-time walkthrough

The walkthrough has multiple pages. Tap Next to move forward, or swipe between pages. Tap Skip at any time if you do not want to continue.

Your choices are saved only when you tap Start Reading or Skip.

1. Learn the three search formats

The Find anything page explains that the same search bar accepts:

A full or abbreviated Bible reference, such as John 3:16, Psalm 23, or rom 8.
A compact shortcut, such as j316.
A topic, such as grace, wisdom, or forgiveness.

A compact shortcut can match more than one Bible book. For example, j316 can show John 3:16, Job 3:16, Joel 3:16, and other matching books. Choose the result you intended.

This page is an explanation, not a working search field. You can use Search after the walkthrough closes.

2. Choose a Bible translation

On Choose your Bible, select the translation you want GospelGrasp to use:

BSB — Berean Standard Bible. This is the default and currently supports GospelGrasp’s Scripture categories and original-language word help.
WEB — World English Bible reading text.
KJV — King James Version reading text.

You can change the translation later in Settings.

3. Preview Scripture categories

Scripture categories are colors added by GospelGrasp to identify kinds of information in a passage, such as names of God, places, time, and quantities. They are different from personal highlights that you add yourself.

The walkthrough uses John 3:16 in the BSB to preview those colors.

Leave Show categories on to use the colors.
Turn Show categories off if you prefer plain Bible text.

The category preview and current category coverage are available with the BSB. Coverage may vary by passage.

4. Preview original-language word help

A lexicon is a dictionary for the Bible’s original Greek and Hebrew words. The walkthrough underlines the word “loved” in John 3:16.

Tap the underlined word loved.
A small card shows the Greek word, a pronunciation written with English letters, and a short meaning.
Where the sound button is available, tap it to hear the word.
Tap the X on the card to close it.

Use Enable lexicon to choose whether supported words should be interactive in the Reader. Turning it off also closes the preview card.

Original-language word help currently requires the BSB and appears only where GospelGrasp has matching word information. The walkthrough itself is a local demonstration; it does not promise that every word in every passage has a lexicon entry.

5. Try the verse study preview

The Study tools, built in page uses John 3:16 to demonstrate a verse’s swipe actions.

Swipe the verse to the left.
Tap AI Study.
Explore the demonstration study.
Close the study to return to onboarding.

The demonstration includes a passage explanation, original-language insights, connections to other Bible passages, and Lens examples. Lens can show maps and character relationships connected to a passage.

The demonstration is included in the app, works without an internet connection, and does not use one of your available AI studies. Generated study material elsewhere in GospelGrasp can contain mistakes, so compare it with the Bible and trusted study sources.

The More and Stack actions are visible in this preview so it matches the Reader, but they do not open their full features during onboarding.

Finish with Start Reading

On the last page, tap Start Reading. GospelGrasp saves your walkthrough choices, marks onboarding complete, and opens the Reader.

If the account already has a saved reading position, the Reader returns there. A new account without a saved position starts at John 3:16.

Skip the walkthrough

Tap Skip from any page to close the walkthrough and return to Home. Skipping also marks onboarding complete, so GospelGrasp does not keep showing it on that device.

Because the walkthrough begins with BSB, Show categories on, and Enable lexicon on, tapping Skip without changing anything saves those defaults. If you changed a choice before tapping Skip, GospelGrasp saves the changed choice.

What GospelGrasp saves or syncs

A successful email-and-password sign-in saves credentials in protected storage on that device so Face ID or Touch ID can be offered later.
Signing out clears the saved credentials and session. It does not delete the same account’s local notes, highlights, progress, sermons, or recordings.
The selected Bible translation, Show categories choice, and Enable lexicon choice are saved on the device as soon as you finish or skip the walkthrough. GospelGrasp then sends all three choices to your account when a connection is available.
Completing or skipping onboarding is saved for that account on the device. GospelGrasp syncs your choices first, then syncs completion so the walkthrough does not appear again on another device with old preferences.
If the device is offline, your choices remain saved there. GospelGrasp keeps them ready to sync and tries again as soon as the app has a connection. Older account settings will not replace choices that are still waiting to sync.
The onboarding AI Study demonstration is bundled with the app. It does not upload a request or reduce your available studies.

Requirements and limits

Creating an account, signing in with a password, and requesting a reset link require an internet connection.
The current registration form’s Name field is not saved or sent when the account is created.
GospelGrasp does not show password-length or password-format requirements in the current iPhone and iPad form. If the account service rejects a password, the app currently shows a general registration error.
A returning account may reopen with local content while temporarily offline if its session was confirmed by GospelGrasp within the previous seven days. An expired or rejected session returns to Sign In.
Face ID and Touch ID use the biometric settings already configured on the device.
BSB, WEB, and KJV are the translations currently offered during onboarding.
Scripture categories and original-language word help currently use BSB coverage and may not be available for every word or passage.
The walkthrough appears once per account after completion or Skip is saved.

If something does not work

Check the spelling of the email address and enter the password again. If you do not remember the password, tap Forgot Password?

Connect the device to the internet and try again. A new password sign-in cannot be completed offline.

Face ID or Touch ID is not shown

Confirm that biometrics are set up in the device’s Settings. You must also have completed a successful email-and-password sign-in on this device since the last time you signed out.

The biometric check fails

Dismiss the message and sign in with your email and password. A canceled or unsuccessful device check produces the same failure message.

The passwords do not match

Enter the same password in Password and Confirm Password. GospelGrasp does not send the registration request until they match.

Create Account is unavailable

Confirm that both password fields match and select the study-data consent checkbox. GospelGrasp cannot create the account until you give that consent.

An account already uses the email address

Return to Sign In and use that account, or tap Forgot Password? if you do not remember its password.

The reset email does not arrive

Confirm that you entered the address used for the account.
Check the spam or junk folder.
Wait a few minutes before requesting another link.
If GospelGrasp shows a “Too many attempts” message, wait for the stated number of seconds.

Onboarding does not appear

The walkthrough does not appear again after that account has completed or skipped it on the device. It can also remain hidden when completion has synced from another device.

A walkthrough choice does not affect the Reader

Make sure you ended the walkthrough with Start Reading or Skip. The preview changes are not saved until the walkthrough closes through one of those buttons.

Original-language word help requires the BSB and appears only on supported words. Scripture category colors also depend on available BSB passage data.

Common questions

Do I need an account to use GospelGrasp?

Yes. The release version requires a signed-in GospelGrasp account before the main app opens.

Does Skip turn off the features shown in onboarding?

No. Skip saves the choices currently shown. If you have not changed them, BSB, Scripture categories, and the lexicon remain selected.

Can I change these choices later?

Yes. Open Settings to change the Bible translation, Scripture categories, and lexicon setting.

Does the onboarding AI Study use one of my studies?

No. The John 3:16 demonstration is included in the app and does not count against your available studies.

Why might onboarding appear again on another device?

Completion is saved immediately on the device where you finish or skip. If the first device has not been able to reconnect and sync yet, another device may not know that onboarding was already completed. Once the first device is back online, GospelGrasp syncs the choices and then the completion status.

Does signing out erase my work?

No. Signing out removes account access and saved credentials from the device, but it keeps that account’s local GospelGrasp content. Account deletion is a separate action.