Weekly Review
ECFA Membership Changes, MinistryWatch Database Changes, On This Date in MinistryWatch
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:
Alberto Mottesi Evangelistic Association, Inc. (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 85), Alliance for Children Everywhere (Up 1 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 85 to 90), Association of Christian Schools International (3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Up 75 to 90), Attack Poverty (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 100), Back2Back Ministries (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 85), Biblica / International Bible Society (Down 2 to 1 Star, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 90 to 85), Cedar Ridge Childrens Home and School (Up 3 to 5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90), Children of Promise International (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95), Christian Freedom International (CFI) (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 100), Church World Service (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: N/A), CITA, Inc. (Up 1 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: Up 70 to 75), Dream Center Foundation (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 50), Fellowship Missions (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 70), Glory of Zion International Ministries (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: N/A), Home of Grace (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 75), Inspire International (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 60), Jericho Road Ministries (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95), Jews for Jesus (Up 1 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Up 75 to 80), Kingdom Advisors (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90), Lamb & Lion Ministries (Up 4 to 5 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95), Mel Trotter Ministries (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90), New Mission Systems International (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95), Open Doors with Brother Andrew, Inc. (Down 3 to 2 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 100), SafeHouse Outreach Inc. (Up 2 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 85), Shelter for Life International Inc. (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 95), Sunrise Mission Inc. (Up 3 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: D, DCS: 50), TeenPact Leadership School (5 Stars, Transparency Grade: From D to C, DCS: Up 40 to 85), The Foundry Ministries (Up 4 to 5 Stars, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: 70), Town and Country Manor (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 80), White’s Residential and Family Services / Josiah Whites (Down 2 to 1 Star, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: Down 85 to 80), Willow Creek Association / Global Leadership Network (Down 2 to 1 Star, Transparency Grade: C, DCS: Down 40 to 35), Word for the World USA (Down 5 to 4 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: N/A), Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc. / WBT (Down 4 to 3 Stars, Transparency Grade: A, DCS: 90)
ECFA Changes. The following organizations have had membership status changes in the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. ADDITIONS: None REMOVALS: Midland Evangelical Free Church (Midland, Mich.)
On the Podcast: Elder Fraud, the AME Church, SBC Leadership Challenges, and the IRS. On today’s program, we discuss financial abuse of the elderly. Some charity scams target old people, but there are things you can do to protect yourself and your family. A new law will require Christian ministries to file their Form 990s electronically. I’ll explain why that’s a good thing, but it won’t solve the problems at the IRS. We begin today with new developments in the case of the AME Church’s Retirement Funds. You can hear the podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and other podcast apps, or you can simply click here.
Podcast Extra. Evangelical Media Habits. This week we have back on the program Ron Sellers, the president of Grey Matter Research and Consulting. Ron Sellers and I discuss a new study his organization has done in conjunction with Infinity Concepts. That study was published a week ago, and it’s called “Media Matters: Evangelicals And The Media.” You can get a copy of the 26-page report by clicking here. You can listen to our conversation here.
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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 6,000 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.
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.
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.
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’ve posted this link for the past few weeks, but I want to keep it in front of you, and I also want you to know that we continue to add new ministries and additional information about existing ministries. So if you haven’t hit the link in a week or so, you might want to hit it again.
On This Date at MinistryWatch. TWO YEARS AGO: Louisiana authorities arrested pastor Tony Spell on an assault charge on Tuesday after he admitted that he drove his church bus toward a man who has been protesting his decision to continue holding mass gatherings at church in defiance of public health orders during the coronavirus pandemic. Officials said Spell also had outstanding traffic tickets. Read more here. ONE YEAR AGO: Tates Creek Presbyterian Church (TCPC) in Lexington, Kentucky, has launched a survey on its website to collect information for GRACE as part of its investigation into allegations of sexual abuse/misconduct made against musician and artist Chris Rice during his participation in TCPC events. As MinistryWatch reported in October 2020, TCPC hired GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment) to investigate allegations of sexual abuse by Dove Award-winning singer/songwriter Chris Rice after a former student told Senior Pastor Robert Cunningham that “Mr. Rice has sexually assaulted him on multiple occasions.” After more than a year and a half, that investigation is still not complete. Read more here.
