About Us

ef·fec·tive adj. 1: having an intended or expected effect; 2: producing a strong impression or response.
American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition.

Welcome to EffectiveBibleStudy.com!

I was first challenged to really study the Bible with a view to understanding and applying it while in college. While I never achieved that degree in Electrical Engineering, I did gain a passion for something worth far more. Since then it has been my lifelong pursuit to study and teach the Bible effectively, and to teach others how. In my opinion, effective Bible study is examination and research that produces both accurate, useful knowledge from the Biblical text, and a faith activated response on the part of the student.

At EffectiveBibleStudy.com we want to provide a place where resources are identified, books are reviewed, and examples and projects are presented which are effective. In addition, since learning the Bible should mean sharing its message with others, we will also give attention to methods and suggestions for teaching and preaching what is learned. Of course, this will mostly come out of my own experience as a student, teacher, pastor and preacher.

The practice of effective Bible study is for everyone, not just those in ivory towers (scholars) and pulpits (preaching professionals). While those with advanced education or special opportunity may learn even more or plumb more of the depths of knowledge, every Bible student is fully capable of making life changing discoveries in God’s Word.

Again, welcome to EffectiveBibleStudy.com!

Who is Richard Cravy? Born in 1948 in the eastern part of Texas, I attended Rice University (Electrical Engineering) and Florida College (Bible). I have been serving in church and church-related ministries since 1970. I have extensive experience in graphics, printing, computers, and teaching. I have been married since 1967 to my one love, Jeannette; we have three children and nine grandchildren.

Working together with me is my son, Aaron Cravy. He and his wife, Adrianna, are the parents of one of my granddaughters, Nathalia, and otwo of my grandsons, Micah and Gideon. Without Aaron’s technical skills and encouragement, this website would not be possible. His contribution to its success is greater than mine. You can learn more about his family at his personal blog – www.aaroncravy.com. Learn more about his company at www.mumbojumboonline.com.

Other News

Featured Articles Library
“Israel Fieldbook” Free Book Download

A few weeks ago we featured a great book on Jerusalem by Galyn Weimers. Mr. Weimers has now released another book on Israel for free download. This 188 page book entitled Israel Fieldbook includes details and photos from 66 sites in Israel and 80 in Jerusalem. It is accompanied by 300+ photos plus maps, diagrams and charts at the back of the book. The previous book on Jerusalem was in 8.5" x 11" format, but this one is the more compact [...]
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Featured Articles Library
Free Book on Apologetics

Dr. Kenneth D. Boa and Robert M. Bowman are two respected Christian apologists. In 2001 they co-edited and contributed with others to the writing of a 658 page book on apologetics entitled, Faith has Its Reasons.
Now they have made two digital versions of this book available for free download. The book includes a history of Christian apologetics, presentation of the four major approaches to apologetics, reviews of the major apologists past and present, an extensive bibliography and resource section and [...]
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Featured Articles
“The God Who Is There” Sermons

Preaching on the existence of God.
To best teach our congregation at Tanglewood in Odessa on this vital topic of God’s existence, I have been delivering a series of Sunday morning sermons on “The God Who Is There.” In addition to the messages, I have also made recommendations on resources families can use to learn more and use with their children and grandchildren. To listen to any of these sermons, click on PAGES above and select “The God Who Is There.”
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Featured Articles Teaching & Study
“The God Who Is There” Resources

I have given some thought to the value of having a balanced and readily accessible set of resources on the existence of God.
- Allows the preacher, teacher and student of the Word to give an answer (with documentation) both to seekers and to critics to the Faith (1 Peter 3:15).
- Makes it possible to more accurately and persuasively strengthen the faith and equip believers.
- Demonstrates integrity in having familiarized ourselves with, and accurately represented, the views on those on “the other side” (those promoting a strictly naturalistic, materialistic explanation).
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Featured Articles Teaching & Study
“The God Who Is There” Series

A Dire Situation
A great battle is now in progress in our American culture. It's a battle that has been going on for perhaps half a century now. Unfortunately the spiritual forces opposing belief in God and all that comes with it have been winning this battle.
At present we wonder why we are seeing the majority of our own youth abandoning their faith as they leave home. Perhaps it is because they have no deep conviction about the existence of God [...]
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Featured Articles Library Teaching & Study
Free Book on Jerusalem

In doing a recent series of lessons on the city of Jerusalem throughout the Bible, I cast a wide net to find resources of a historical, geographical, and archeological nature concerning this great city in the Old and New Testaments. One very valuable resource has been a free (for download) 250 page book written by Galyn Wiemers from www.generationword.com. Entitled, "Jerusalem: History, Archeology and Apologetic Proof of Scripture," it contains over 500 photos, maps and charts along with much explanatory text. [...]
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Featured Articles Preaching Teaching & Study
“Portraits of Jesus” Series Available

Without argument, more paintings, drawings, images and statues have been made of Jesus than of any other person who has ever lived! Early catacomb images pictured Him with short hair and clean-shaven. Western artists of the Middle Ages up until today give Him longer hair, a beard, and more Western European features. But the truth is, the eye-witness records do not give us one shred of evidence about his actual appearance. Why? The answer is not clear. But this is clear: the gospel writers were not interested in what He looked like – they wanted everyone to know what He WAS like!
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Featured Articles Library
Books That Changed My Thinking (4)

Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words should be one of the most treasured books in any serious Bible student’s library. Among its many values: discover how challenging the translation process can be from Greek to English (and give Bible translators a break!) Newer expository dictionaries are now available, but once you learn to use Vine’s you can comfortably switch to one of them if you wish.
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