Christian Community Action Rises to Highest Donor Confidence Score

Plus, other notable ministry happenings from this week.

Here at MinistryWatch, one of our goals is to equip donors with the information they need to make wise decisions with their giving. That’s why we manage our database, which rates more than 1,000 of the country’s largest ministries based on their financial efficiency, financial transparency, and their donor confidence. Each week, we highlight ministries in our database that have had rating changes.

A few notable changes in the database this week:

• Four ministries rose into the top 60% for financial efficiency within their respective sectors, raising both their star ratings and their Donor Confidence Scores. Check them out below.
• Notably, after a large group of ministries’ annual financials process through the MinistryWatch database (like it did in last week’s Weekly Review), it will impact other ministries’ scores also. Since financial efficiency is rated on a sliding scale (1 Star: bottom 20%; 2 Stars: bottom 40%; 3 Stars: top 60%; 4 Stars: top 40%; 5 Stars: top 20%), comparing ministries with others in their sectors, when the financials of one ministry causes its rating to rise, it will bump another ministry down into a lower tier even though that ministry’s financials remained the same. Much of this week’s changes are due to that.
• Christian Community Action in Lewisville, Texas, rose to a Donor Confidence Score of 100 — the highest a ministry can achieve in the MinistryWatch database.
• A drop in financial efficiency dropped the Donor Confidence Score for Indianapolis-based FAME (Fellowship of Associates of Medical Evangelism), but it’s still an 80 — a strong “Give With Confidence” rating.

We also highlight stories from our podcast, where you can catch up on the week’s news in less than 30 minutes—perfect for a commute or walk. Check it all out below.

With that, here are this week’s three top stories on the MinistryWatch website:

OH Megachurch Pastor Fired Over Sexual Misconduct Accusation

By Jack Panyard. New Life Chapel, a 3,000-congregant church in the Cincinnati suburb of West Chester, Ohio, announced Oct. 30 it fired pastor Lonnie Snell a week earlier for “sexual misconduct with a subordinate of consensual age and development.”

Former Acts 29 CEO and Wife Charged With Rape in the UK

By Jack Panyard. The former CEO of Acts 29, a church planting network, and his wife have been charged in the United Kingdom with sexual assaults that police say occurred nearly 20 years ago.

Four Women Accuse North Point Community Church Contractor of Sex Abuse

By Jack Panyard. Four women say a former contractor with North Point Community Church sexually abused them when they were ages 14 to 22, with incidents dating back as far as 20 years. Andy Stanley’s Georgia megachurch says it responded appropriately after hearing the accusations.

Here’s what else is new at MinistryWatch this week.

MinistryWatch Database Changes

MinistryWatch now has more than 1,800 ministries in its database. These ministries represent more than $58 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:

Alberto Mottesi Evangelistic Association (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 65)

Now in top 40% for financial efficiency in Evangelism sector.

Arrow Child & Family Ministries (Not Rated [-2], Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 55 to 57)

Negative financial efficiency rating due to negative net worth / Posts audited financials on website

Breakthrough Ministries (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 58)

Now in top 40% for financial efficiency in Community Development sector.

Chinese Christian Mission (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 78 to 98)

Now in top 60% for financial efficiency in Foreign Missions sector, also raising its Donor Confidence Score by 20 points.

Christian Community Action (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 80 to 100)

Now in top 60% for financial efficiency in Community Development sector, also raising its Donor Confidence Score by 20 points.

Christian Veterinary Mission (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 75 to 95)

Now in top 60% for financial efficiency in Evangelism sector, also raising its Donor Confidence Score by 20 points.

Churches United for the Homeless (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 73)

Now in top 40% for financial efficiency in Rescue Missions/Homeless Shelters sector.

Cornerstone Assistance Network (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 75 to 95)

Now in top 60% for financial efficiency in Relief & Development sector, also raising its Donor Confidence Score by 20 points.

Far Reaching Ministries (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: Up 66 to 71)

Board contains at least 5 members and no more than 12 members.

Ministries with downgraded ratings:

Amazima Ministries International (Down 2 to 1 Star, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 71)

Now in bottom 20% for financial efficiency in Foreign Missions sector.

Delta Streets Ministries / Delta Streets Academy (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 71)

Now in top 40% (down from top 20%) for financial efficiency in K-12 Schools/Academies sector.

Dutton Christian School (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 68)

Now in top 60% (down from top 40%) for financial efficiency in K-12 Schools/Academies sector.

FAME – Fellowship of Associates of Medical Evangelism (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 100 to 80)

Now in bottom 40% for financial efficiency in Evangelism sector, also dropping its Donor Confidence Score by 20 points.

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On The MinistryWatch Podcast

North Point Community Church, Teen Challenge, New Life Chapel and Lonnie Snell, Pastors & Planes

On today’s program, Andy Stanley’s Georgia megachurch is facing serious accusations…a group of women say a man who used to work at North Point Community Church abused them decades ago. We’ll have details.

And, a former resident of a Teen Challenge program in Oklahoma is suing the ministry, saying that instead of offering the safe and healing environment it had promised, it abused her and forced her to work for free. We’ll take a look.

Plus, our monthly look at Pastors & Planes.

But first, a large Ohio church has fired its founding pastor. New Life Chapel in West Chester, a Cincinnati suburb, announced October 30 that Lonnie Snell is out.

The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. We get editorial, database, and other technical support from Stephen DuBarry, Rod Pitzer, Heidi Allums, Casey Sudduth, and Christina Darnell. Writers who contributed to today’s program include Jack Panyard, Jessica Etturalde, Kim Roberts, Neva Piombino, and Makella Knowles.

Until next time, may God bless you.

Listen 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 [email protected].  That will come directly to the desk of MinistryWatch President Warren Smith, 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 we 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 short (3.5 minutes) video that explains what we do here at MinistryWatch, and why.  If you’re new to MinistryWatch, we hope you’ll check it out. To find it, click here.