Weekly Review
ECFA Membership Changes, MinistryWatch Database Changes, 75 Red Flags, Giving to Ukraine, On This Date in MinistryWatch
75 Red Flags. MinistryWatch has released a new free booklet, “75 Red Flags To Consider Before Donating For A Christian Ministry.” To read more, and to download your free, printable copy of the 18-page booklet, click here.
On the Podcast: On today’s program, we talk about Ukraine. The Russian invasion has dominated the news, and motivated Christians to give. We offer some advice about how to give responsibly and helpfully. Also, MinistryWatch unveils a couple of new tools to help donors with their giving efforts. We begin the program with a look at the multi-million dollar homes of televangelists. You can hear the podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and other podcast apps, or you can simply 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.
ECFA Changes. The following organizations have had membership status changes in the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. ADDITIONS: Jobs For Life (Raleigh, N.C.), Hope Community Church (Mount Joy, Penn.), 4VEH, The Evangelistic Voice of Haiti (Columbus, Ind.), Options Health (Martinez, Calif.), First United Methodist Church of Marysville (Marysville, Ohio), We Carry Kevan (Ft. Wayne, Ind.), Three Roots International (Fairfax, Va.), Prison Seminaries Foundation (Walker, La.), Community Health Center of West Palm Beach (West Palm Beach, Fla.), Go on the Mission (Silverdale, Wash.), Boulder Pregnancy Resource Center (Boulder, Colo.), SonLight Power (Milford, Ohio), Eastside Academy (Bellevue, Wash.) REMOVALS: None
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MinistryWatch 1000 Database Changes. MinistryWatch now has more than 1,000 ministries in its database. These ministries represent more than $36-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: Arrow Child & Family Ministries (Up -2 to 5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 80 to 85), Lifewater International (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 100), Love a Child (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 80), Proverbs 31 Ministries (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95), Rapha International (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 85 to 90), Santa Barbara Rescue Mission (1 Star, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 80), Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc. / WBT (4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90), Care Net (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90), Catholic Charities USA (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 35), ChildFund / Christian Children’s Fund / CCF (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 50),Children’s Hunger Fund / CHF (Up 4 to 5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95), Christian Appalachian Project (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 60), Christians in Action, Inc. (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: N/A), Helps Ministries (N/A Stars, Transparency Grade: From C to D, DCS: N/A), Iris Global (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 85), Jerry Drace Evangelistic Association (4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: N/A), Langham Partnership USA (1 Star, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90), Alliance for Children Everywhere (Down 2 to 1 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A), Blessings International (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A to 95), Bridges for Peace, Inc. / BFPUSA (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 45 to 60), Derek Prince Ministries (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A to 90), DiscipleMakers, Inc. (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 95 to 100), Echo, Inc. (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 95 to 100), Ethnos360, Inc. pka: New Tribes Mission, USA (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 55), Food For The Poor, Inc. (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 35), Home of Grace (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: N/A), Hope Ministries (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: From C to A, DCS: 95), Institute in Basic Life Principles / Bill Gothard (1 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 30 to 55), John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A), Keys for Kids Ministries (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: From C to A, DCS: N/A), Mission Aviation Fellowship (1 Star, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 75 to 90), Quiet Hour (1 Star, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: N/A to 75), Ramesh Richard Evangelism and Church Health (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A to 80), Save The Storks (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 80 to 85), SHABACH! Ministries Inc. (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: Up 85 to 95), TEAM (The Evangelical Alliance Mission) (4 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 60 to 65), The Seed Company (2 Stars, Transparency Grade: From A to C, DCS: 85), Walk Thru the Bible Ministries (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: From A, DCS: N/A to 95), Walter Hoving Home Inc (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A to 80), World Outreach Ministries / Jason Peebles (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: Up 65 to 80), World Vision, Inc., U.S. (4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 70 to 80), YUGO Ministries (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A). The following ministry has been added to the MinistryWatch database with the most recent year’s financial data: International Care Ministries (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 55), Word for the World USA (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A)
Send Us Your News Tips. 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.
Salary Data Now In MinistryWatch Database. We now have salary information for nearly 5,000 executives from more than half of the ministries in the MinistryWatch 1000 database. So check out this new addition by clicking on the red button at the top of this page, or click 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.
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. 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, I hope you’ll check it out. To find it, click here.
On This Date at MinistryWatch. EIGHT YEARS AGO: On March 7, 2014, MinistryWatch reported that Bill Gothard would resign from the ministry he founded. He later resigned amid allegations of sexual abuse. Read more here. TWO YEARS AGO: On February March 2, 2020, MinistryWatch reported that Wheaton College would rescind the title of “Professor Emeritus” from Gilbert Bilezikian following allegations of “inappropriate and unprofessional conduct.” Bilezikian, known as “Dr. B,” was a guiding force in the formation of the influential Willow Creek Church. Read more here.
