MOVIEGUIDE Rises, American Heritage Girls Drops in Financial Efficiency

And 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, plus a brief explanation about why it matters.

A few notable changes in the database this week:

• We received new financial data for a number of ministries, which will be reflected in the coming weeks. Based on that new data, some ministries jumped up (or down) significantly in financial efficiency: Good News Communications (MOVIEGUIDE) jumped from 1 Star to 3 Stars for financial efficiency, which also boosted its donor confidence by 20 points. American Heritage Girls, on the other hand, fell from 4 Stars to 1 Star, which dropped its donor confidence by 20 points.
• One ministry, Lifewise Academy, has both a rise and fall in ratings. Its financial efficiency fell from 2 Stars to 1 Star, but its Transparency Grade and Donor Confidence Score both rose significantly after it joined the ECFA in October 2025.
• Recently, we said International Fellowship of Evangelical Students USA (IFES/USA) had dropped in transparency because it did not post audited financials on its website—however, they DO in fact post audited financials. That said, please know it is always our intent to fairly represent the ministries in our database. We appreciate IFES/USA reaching out to us to correct our mistake.

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. We highly recommend ministries join the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA), which is why we list organizations that have either joined ECFA in the past week or been removed. Check it all out below.

With that, here are three top stories on the MinistryWatch website from this past week:

Arkansas Assemblies of God Pastor Sued for Sexual Assault

By Kim Roberts.  Another lawsuit has been filed against an Assemblies of God church and its pastor for sexual abuse. Suzanne Lander, a resident of Texas, filed a lawsuit on January 26 against Pastor Rodney Loy and the North Little Rock First Assembly of God. Lander claims Loy sexually abused her for a 20-year period from 1996 when she was 16 until 2016 when she was a 36-year-old woman.

Missing Agape Flights Plane Found in Haiti, No Survivors

By Isaac Wood. Agape Flights lost contact with a plane on Thursday afternoon (Feb. 5), and search and rescue teams found the plane in the Haitian mountains on Friday. Officials believe no one on board survived the crash.

Small CA Lutheran Church Fights to Keep its Property

By Kim Roberts. A small Lutheran church in southern California is in a court battle to maintain ownership of its property, worth about $5 million. In May 2023, the Southwest California Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) voted to place the property of Faith Lutheran Church in San Dimas in “Synodical preservation.” The Synod asserts that it is the equitable owner of the property and is entitled to have Faith Lutheran convey legal title to it. The 70-year-old church has so far refused.

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

MinistryWatch Database Changes

MinistryWatch now has more than 1,300 ministries in its database. These ministries represent more than $44-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 recently added to the database:

Good Shepherd India (N/A Stars, Transparency Grade: F, DCS: 8)

Heartland Ministries (4 Stars, Transparency Grade: F, DCS: 53)

Passion Inc./Passion Conferences (N/A Stars, Transparency Grade: F, DCS: 24)

Ministries with upgraded ratings:

Choice Books of Northern Virginia (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 92)

Now in top 40% for financial efficiency in Christian Growth sector.

Answers in Genesis (Up 1 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 65)

Now in bottom 40% (up from bottom 20%) for financial efficiency in Christian Growth sector.

Boston Rescue Mission (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 50 to 70)

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

Cedarville University (Up 4 to 5 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 73)

Now in top 20% for financial efficiency in Colleges/Universities sector.

English Language Institute in China (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 90)

Now in top 40% for financial efficiency in Foreign Missions sector.

For the Nations Refugee Outreach (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 92)

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

Good News Communications Inc / MOVIEGUIDE (Up 1 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: Up 55 to 75)

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

Miami Rescue Mission/ The Caring Place (Up 1 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 73)

Now in bottom 40% (up from bottom 20%) for financial efficiency in Rescue Mission/Homeless Shelters sector.

Ministries with downgraded ratings:

Advent Christian Village (Down 2 to 1 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 72)

Now in bottom 20% for financial efficiency in Community Development sector.

African Bible Colleges (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 97)

Now in top 40% (down from top 20%) for financial efficiency in Colleges/Universities sector.

American Heritage Girls (Down 4 to 1 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 95 to 75)

Now in bottom 20% for financial efficiency in Christian Growth sector.

Arrow Child & Family Ministries (N/A Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: Down 55 to 53)

CEO/President’s compensation is not within one standard deviation of the median compensation.

Atlas Free (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 100)

Now in top 60% for financial efficiency in Anti-Trafficking sector.

Lifewise Academy (Down 2 to 1 Stars, Transparency Grade: Up C to A, DCS: Up 60 to 80)

Dropped into bottom 20% for financial efficiency in Christian Growth sector—but its TG and DCS rose because it is now a member of the ECFA.

Miracle Hill Ministries, Inc.  (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95)

Now in top 60% for financial efficiency in Rescue Missions/Homeless Shelters sector.

MomCo (Down 2 to 1 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 73)

Now in bottom 20% for financial efficiency in Fellowship Evangelism sector.

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On The MinistryWatch Podcast

ELCA Sues Member Congregation, Preventing Financial Fraud, Agape Flights, BSF Moves HQ

On this week’s program, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has sued a small church in California for legal title to its property—but that small church is fighting back. We’ll have details.

And, a hacker drained $85,000 from an Oklahoma church’s bank account. Then in North Dakota, a woman was indicted for stealing over $600,000 from a church she worked at. Both cases highlight why ordinary access to church finances can equal extraordinary losses—and the need for tightening protocols.

Also, six months ago, Barnabas Aid came under scrutiny for accusations of financial mismanagement. Now, under new leadership, the ministry is working hard to turn things around. Plus, Bible Study Fellowship prepares its new headquarters in Grapevine, Texas.

But first, Agape Flights, a Christian aviation ministry, lost contact with one of its planes last Thursday. The next day, search and rescue teams found the plane crashed in the Haitian mountains. No one on board survived the crash.

Listen here.

ECFA Membership Changes

Additions

Ozaukee Christian School (West Bend, WI)

Vibrant A Christian Church (Mechanicsburg, PA)

Joshua Project (Houston, TX)

Lupins (Oxford, PA)

Imago Dei Community Church (Pasco, WA)

Genesis Church (Noblesville, IN)

Removals

The Church of Eleven22 (Jacksonville, FL)

 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.