Weekly Review
ECFA Member Changes, On This Date at MinistryWatch, MinistryWatch 1000 Database Changes
ECFA Changes
The following organizations have had membership status changes in the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. 
ADDITIONS:
REMOVALS: In His Image International (Tulsa, Okla.) Southlake Presbyterian Church (Huntersville, N.C.), Cherry Street Mission Ministries (Toledo, Ohio), Lighthouse Christian Center (Port Angeles, Wash.),
On This Date at MinistryWatch
ONE YEAR AGO: Two Christian ministry leaders in Florida have been arrested for their part in fraudulently obtaining COVID relief funds totaling over $8 million. Father and son, Evan and Josh Edwards respectively, were taken from their home in New Smyrna Beach on December 14, 2022. Read more here.
FOUR YEARS AGO. Legislation that protects churches and other nonprofit organizations from having to pay taxes on some employee benefits died in congress. The Lessening Impediments from Taxes (LIFT) for Charities Act introduced by Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) and Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) in February repeals a section of the 2017 tax reform bill that requires some tax-exempt organizations to pay federal taxes on benefits like parking, meals and transportation costs like transit passes. It has since been reintroduced, but has so far failed to become law Read more here.
FIVE YEARS AGO: MinistryWatch issues a Donor Alert regarding Food For The Poor because of deceptive donor solicitations. Read more here.
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.
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 my desk, and we’ll take it from there.
On The MinistryWatch Podcast
Brian Houston and Hillsong, Mike Bickle and IHOPKC, the UMC Breakup Continues. On today’s program, Brian Houston of Hillsong infamy is starting a new church. We ask: is it too soon? Also on today’s program: Mike Bickle of the International House of Prayer Kansas City has apologized for past behaviors, sort of.
We also have an update on the lawsuit against prosperity gospel preacher David Taylor. We finally have a court date. Finally, American Life League has published a list of which non-profit organizations you should not support based on their abortion positions. Some of the ministries on the list may surprise you.
We begin today with news from one of the largest Southern Baptist churches in the state of Arkansas. Listen 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.
MinistryWatch Database Changes
MinistryWatch now has more than 1,000 ministries in its database. These ministries represent more than $41-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:
Cafe 1040 (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 100)
Christian Blind Mission / CBM (1 Star, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 81 to 84)
Compassion International, Inc. (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 91)
Crossroads Prison Ministries (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 64 to 74)
Eagle Ranch (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 82 to 92)
Hope International (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 100 to 90)
InFaith FKA: American Missionary Fellowship (-2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 87 to 84)
New Life Ranch (1 Star, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 87 to 84)
Safe Families for Children (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 86 to 83)
The A21 Campaign (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 73 to 76)
Timber Bay / Youth Investment Foundation (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 91)
UMAR Services, Inc. (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: Up 73 to 76)
Union Mission Ministries (1 Star, Transparency Grade: From A to D, DCS: 76)
Urban Youth Impact (Up 1 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 84)
Visalia Rescue Mission (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 62 to 65)
Wisdom Center/Mike Murdock (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: F, DCS: Up 6 to 16)
Word of Life Fellowship (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 78)
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.
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 Highly Paid Ministry Executives and Highly Paid Christian College and University Executives.
Audio Version of Faith-Based Fraud Now Available. Thanks to those of you who made my new book Faith-Based Fraud a best-seller in several Amazon categories this week. It’s now available in paperback and e-book versions. To get your copy, click here. This week, the new audio version released. You can get that from Audible by clicking here.
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.
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.
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.
Maui Giving. If you want to give specifically to ministries working to provide relief in Maui, click here.
MinistryWatch In The News. MinistryWatch is often called upon by Christian and secular media to comment on what is going on in the evangelical world. You can find some of these news reports here.
