I’ll be in Southern California in two weeks for a couple of speaking engagements and meetings. If you live in Los Angeles or Orange County, watch your inbox for invitations to events we’ll be doing there.
The following week I’ll be in Colorado Springs for meetings (and to see my new grandson). I’ll also be at the annual meeting of the National Religious Broadcasters in late February. That will be in Grapevine, Tex. If you plan to be around for the event, send me an email and let’s get a cup of coffee.
Looking ahead, I’ll be at the True Charity Conference in Huntsville, Ala., in April. I look forward to doing donor lunches in Birmingham and Nashville that week. If you live in those cities, check your inbox for dates and locations.
Here’s what else is new at MinistryWatch this week.
MinistryWatch Database Changes
MinistryWatch now has more than 1,000 ministries in its database. These ministries represent more than $43 billion in total revenue, most of that donor revenue from evangelicals. The following ministries have their profiles updated with the most recent year’s financial data. The Financial Efficiency rating of each ministry is in parenthesis. If this rating represents a change from the previous year, that change is noted:
Ministries with upgraded ratings:
Blue Letter Bible (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 76 to 96)
Cedar Ridge Childrens Home and School (Up 4 to 5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 93)
New Horizons Ministries (Up 3 to 5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90)
Precept Ministries International (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 100)
The Institute on Religion & Democracy (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: Up 50 to 70)
ThriVe St. Louis (From N/A to 1 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 75)
Ministries with downgraded ratings:
Alberto Mottesi Evangelistic Association (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 85)
Alfalit International, Inc. (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90)
Arizona Baptist Children’s Services (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 98)
Bethlehem College & Seminary (N/A Stars, Transparency Grade: Down C to D, DCS: 46)
Camp Eagle (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 98 to 78)
Phil Waldrep Evangelistic Association (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 96 to 76)
The Men of Nehemiah (Down 3 to 1 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 90 to 70)
Ministries with new financial data, but no rating changes:
Maranatha Volunteers International (4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 66)
Mission Arlington / Mission Metroplex (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90)
Muncie Mission Ministries (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 55)
New International (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95)
New Life Solutions (1 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 73)
Open Door Mission (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 98)
Operation Blessing (4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90)
Partners Relief and Development (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 77)
The Global Orphan Project (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 97)
The Timothy Initiative (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 75)
Transform Our World (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 75)
Warm Beach Christian Camps and Conference Center (1 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 58)
Wheeler Mission Ministries (1 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 75)
On The MinistryWatch Podcast
The King’s College, Orphanages, Chinese Adoptions, and Immigration
On today’s program, The King’s College in New York City shut its doors in 2023 under a mountain of debt—now, it’s launching a ‘go-forward plan’ in an effort to reopen. We’ll have details.
And, a ministry in the United Kingdom is urging Christians to stop giving to orphanages…and instead give to organizations that focus on family-based care. But when it comes to effective orphan care, is that the best way forward? We reached out to U-S based ministries to get their take.
Plus, a NC church is shutting its doors…and is leveraging an IRS mandate to donate its assets to more than 75 charities.
But first…a group of pregnancy resource centers in New Jersey is asking the Supreme Court to consider its case in protecting donor information. First Choice Women’s Resource Centers, has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider its case about the state asking it to disclose information about its donors.
ECFA Changes
The following organizations have had membership status changes in the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.
ADDITIONS: NONE
REMOVALS: Kingdom Global Ministries (Colleyville, Tex.); Toccoa Falls College (Toccoa Falls, Ga.); Guiding Light Mission (Grand Rapids, Mich.); Gospel City Church (Granger, Ind.); First Church of God in St. Joseph (St. Joseph, Mo.); Wesleyan Covenant Association (The Woodlands, Tex.); Grace Chapel (Clifton Park, N.Y.), Village Schools of the Bible (Bloomington, Ind.); Three Rivers Christian School (Longview, Wash.),
Advice About Giving
Hurricane Helene Giving. Western North Carolina is slowly recovering, but it will need help for months if not years ahead. We have compiled a list of ministries working in Hurricane Helene-affected areas. We’ve also included some tips for making decisions about how and where you should give. To see this article, click here.
To see our complete coverage of Hurricane Helene relief efforts, click here.
Ukraine Giving. If you want to give specifically to ministries working in and near Ukraine, click here. We posted this link before, but we’ve added a few new ministries recently.
Israel Giving. We have compiled a list of ministries working in Israel that we recommend. You will also find some ministries working there that we do NOT recommend. You can find the list here.
Salary Data Now In MinistryWatch Database
We now have salary information for 4,000 executives in our database posted in our profiles. So check out this new addition by clicking on the red button at the top of this page, or here. That takes you to our database. The search engine is right there, and you can type in the name of a ministry you’re interested in and our profile will pop right up – now, with compensation information for the top executives.
If you’d like to see who the highest paid executives are, take a look at our recently published lists of 2025 Highly Paid Ministry Executives and Highly Paid Christian College and University Executives.
A Guide To Giving For Disaster Relief. When disaster hits, Christians give. But where they give can make a big difference? Which organizations are most effective in these post-disaster situations? MinistryWatch has published a list of organizations that are doing relief work and which have an “A” Transparency Grade and a 3-, 4-, or 5-star rating for Financial Efficiency. It’s a list of about 30 ministries, and you can find it on the front page of our website. I’ll also include a link in the show notes to this program. Link to list HERE.
About MinistryWatch
Just a quick reminder that we are now less than two weeks of the end of the year, so take a quick look at our annual list of Shining Lights and make them a part of your year-end giving plan. These are ministries that scored the highest possible ratings in all three categories MinistryWatch evaluates: Transparency, Financial Efficiency, and Donor Confidence. We hope you will use this list of the “best of the best” ministries as your year-end giving guide. You can find the list here.
I also wanted to warn you about so-called “matching” or “challenge” gifts that a lot of ministries use at year-end to try to get you to donate. Matching and challenge gifts can be used ethically, but they are often tools to create a false sense of urgency. These offers to match or double your gift should not keep you from doing your own careful research into that ministry. To read more about matching and challenge gifts, click here.
Drop A Dime On Us. Do you have a story idea for MinistryWatch? If so, send us an email. A lot of the stories we do originate from our readers and listeners. They send us news tips, press releases, emails, questions, and links. So, if you have a story you’d like us to cover, or a ministry that you think needs a closer look, please email us. Our email is info@ministrywatch.com. That will come directly to my desk, and we’ll take it from there.
MinistryWatch and Sex Crimes. We write a lot about pastors and ministry leaders involved in sex crimes. That’s why I thought it might be a good time to re-post this story, which explains why we think covering these crimes are necessary: Why MinistryWatch Reports on Sex Crimes. As always, your feedback is welcome.
MinistryWatch Video. In closing, a reminder that we have created a new, short (3.5 minutes) video that explains what we do here at MinistryWatch, and why. If you’re new to MinistryWatch, I hope you’ll check it out. To find it, click here.
Access to MinistryWatch content is free. However, we hope you will support our work with your prayers and financial gifts. To make a donation, click here.