Good News Productions, International
The information on this page was last updated 5/5/2023. If you see errors or omissions, please email: [email protected]
Summary
Good News Productions, International was established in 1976 with the vision of using culturally relevant media to fill the earth with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Since then, GNPI has grown to include 25 regional centers and Nomad teams. We've produced visual and audio media in more than 100 languages and shared the gospel with millions of people worldwide. With the growth of internet technology and social media, we're also developing platforms and strategies for engaging with different cultures and worldviews online. Whatever the method, whatever the strategy, our goal is the same. GNPI exists to preach the Good News to every tribe and tongue, in a way that is most meaningful and relevant to each of those people groups.
Contact information
Mailing address:
Good News Productions, International
PO Box 222
Joplin, MO 64802-0222
Website: gnpi.org
Phone: (417) 782-0060
Email: [email protected]
Organization details
EIN: 431067086
CEO/President: Mr. Michael A. Schrage
Chairman: Nathan Forkner
Board size: 9
Founder: Ziden and Helen Nutt
Ruling year: 1976
Tax deductible: Yes
Fiscal year end: 12/31
Member of ECFA: Yes
Member of ECFA since: 1993
Purpose
GNPI creates relevant media to proclaim the Good News and empower Jesus followers to do the same. We do this through a network of international teams, who use all forms of media to reach the hearts of their people and multiply disciples across the globe.
Our vision is to fill the earth with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
Mission statement
Our mission is to share the Good News through strategic evangelism and provide effective resources to increase global disciple-making efforts.
Statement of faith
Good News Productions, International uses the following to express its values:
In order to guarantee the perpetuity of the ideas and principles of GNPI, the qualifications of all members will be as follows: eEvery member will be a member of the church of Christ (Christian, non-denominational) and must believe without reservation in the full and final inspiration of the Bible so that it is to him the infallible Word of God, and therefore, the all-sufficient rule of faith and life; in the deity and supreme authority of Jesus Christ; in obedience to the Gospel; in the divine origin and character of the church; and in the restoration of its unity on a New Testament basis.
In order to avoid any misunderstanding or equivocation on the matter of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in His Word, it is hereby required that all members will affirm their unqualified acceptance of the virgin birth, life, death, burial and resurrection of Christ; of the reality of final judgment; and of heaven and hell, all as taught in the Bible.
No sectarian test will be used to determine the qualifications of any member; but all will reaffirm their allegiance yearly to the foregoing belief, or resign at once. Further, to perpetuate sound doctrine and non-sectarian teaching, the Bible will be taught through all productions and media as the only foundation of belief; and all things will be conducted in harmony with the spirit and letter of the Word of God as revealed in the Bible.
Donor confidence score
Transparency grade
C
To understand our transparency grade, click here.
Financial efficiency ratings
Sector: Evangelism Support
This ministry has not been rated.
Click here to read Good News Productions, International's response to our ratings
Financial ratios
| Funding ratios | Sector median | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
Return on fundraising efforts Return on fundraising efforts = Fundraising expense / Total contributions | 6% | 10% | 6% | 9% | 10% | 18% |
Fundraising cost ratio Fundraising cost ratio = Fundraising expense / Total revenue | 6% | 9% | 6% | 8% | 10% | 17% |
Contributions reliance Contributions reliance = Total contributions / Total revenue | 99% | 92% | 91% | 96% | 94% | 94% |
Fundraising expense ratio Fundraising expense ratio = Fundraising expense / Total expenses | 5% | 9% | 6% | 7% | 10% | 14% |
Other revenue reliance Other revenue reliance = Total other revenue / Total revenue | 1% | 8% | 9% | 4% | 6% | 6% |
| Operating ratios | Sector median | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
Program expense ratio Program expense ratio = Program services / Total expenses | 84% | 81% | 82% | 79% | 79% | 76% |
Spending ratio Spending ratio = Total expenses / Total revenue | 97% | 97% | 102% | 113% | 93% | 122% |
Program output ratio Program output ratio = Program services / Total revenue | 83% | 78% | 84% | 90% | 74% | 93% |
Savings ratio Savings ratio = Surplus (deficit) / Total revenue | 3% | 3% | -2% | -13% | 7% | -22% |
Reserve accumulation rate Reserve accumulation rate = Surplus (deficit) / Net assets | 4% | 4% | -3% | -18% | 10% | -27% |
General and admin ratio General and admin ratio = Management and general expense / Total expenses | 12% | 10% | 12% | 13% | 10% | 10% |
| Investing ratios | Sector median | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
Total asset turnover Total asset turnover = Total expenses / Total assets | 1.17 | 1.31 | 1.35 | 1.48 | 1.33 | 1.46 |
Degree of long-term investment Degree of long-term investment = Total assets / Total current assets | 1.33 | 5.62 | 6.71 | 5.20 | 3.27 | 5.31 |
Current asset turnover Current asset turnover = Total expenses / Total current assets | 1.69 | 7.39 | 9.06 | 7.70 | 4.34 | 7.73 |
| Liquidity ratios | Sector median | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
Current ratio Current ratio = Total current assets / Total current liabilities | 39.03 | 9.71 | 1.62 | 12.72 | 35.18 | 7.92 |
Current liabilities ratio Current liabilities ratio = Total current liabilities / Total current assets | 0.03 | 0.10 | 0.62 | 0.08 | 0.03 | 0.13 |
Liquid reserve level Liquid reserve level = (Total current assets - Total current liabilities) / (Total expenses / 12) | 6.59 | 1.46 | 0.51 | 1.44 | 2.69 | 1.36 |
| Solvency ratios | Sector median | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
Liabilities ratio Liabilities ratio = Total liabilities / Total assets | 6% | 11% | 11% | 3% | 3% | 4% |
Debt ratio Debt ratio = Debt / Total assets | 0% | 0% | 1% | 1% | 1% | 1% |
Reserve coverage ratio Reserve coverage ratio = Net assets / Total expenses | 79% | 68% | 66% | 65% | 73% | 66% |
Financials
| Balance sheet | |||||
| Assets | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
| Cash | $297,007 | $225,572 | $286,841 | $524,418 | $276,242 |
| Receivables, inventories, prepaids | $1,375 | $13,789 | $6,415 | $21,478 | $32,651 |
| Short-term investments | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other current assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total current assets | $298,382 | $239,361 | $293,256 | $545,896 | $308,893 |
| Long-term investments | $670,072 | $693,729 | $702,202 | $683,048 | $728,868 |
| Fixed assets | $404,435 | $482,725 | $491,656 | $524,111 | $575,679 |
| Other long-term assets | $304,577 | $190,915 | $38,988 | $31,019 | $26,785 |
| Total long-term assets | $1,379,084 | $1,367,369 | $1,232,846 | $1,238,178 | $1,331,332 |
| Total assets | $1,677,466 | $1,606,730 | $1,526,102 | $1,784,074 | $1,640,225 |
| Liabilities | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
| Payables and accrued expenses | $30,725 | $147,572 | $23,059 | $15,518 | $37,512 |
| Other current liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $1,500 |
| Total current liabilities | $30,725 | $147,572 | $23,059 | $15,518 | $39,012 |
| Debt | $0 | $22,000 | $22,000 | $22,000 | $22,000 |
| Due to (from) affiliates | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other long-term liabilities | $154,714 | $3,538 | $5,747 | $8,160 | $10,137 |
| Total long-term liabilities | $154,714 | $25,538 | $27,747 | $30,160 | $32,137 |
| Total liabilities | $185,439 | $173,110 | $50,806 | $45,678 | $71,149 |
| Net assets | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
| Without donor restrictions | $1,172,985 | $1,159,565 | $1,387,369 | $1,630,029 | $1,412,859 |
| With donor restrictions | $319,042 | $274,055 | $87,927 | $135,367 | $156,217 |
| Net assets | $1,492,027 | $1,433,620 | $1,475,296 | $1,738,396 | $1,569,076 |
| Revenues and expenses | |||||
| Revenue | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
| Total contributions | $2,087,459 | $1,932,646 | $1,917,396 | $2,375,813 | $1,838,341 |
| Program service revenue | $29,469 | $20,551 | $167 | $11,977 | $2,833 |
| Membership dues | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Investment income | $69,643 | $100,986 | ($2,134) | $53,522 | $40,117 |
| Other revenue | $76,703 | $73,607 | $80,129 | $97,584 | $78,358 |
| Total other revenue | $175,815 | $195,144 | $78,162 | $163,083 | $121,308 |
| Total revenue | $2,263,274 | $2,127,790 | $1,995,558 | $2,538,896 | $1,959,649 |
| Expenses | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
| Program services | $1,775,278 | $1,787,051 | $1,795,517 | $1,882,692 | $1,821,797 |
| Management and general | $226,790 | $258,982 | $294,124 | $244,789 | $239,810 |
| Fundraising | $202,799 | $123,433 | $169,017 | $242,095 | $327,293 |
| Total expenses | $2,204,867 | $2,169,466 | $2,258,658 | $2,369,576 | $2,388,900 |
| Change in net assets | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
| Surplus (deficit) | $58,407 | ($41,676) | ($263,100) | $169,320 | ($429,251) |
| Other changes in net assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total change in net assets | $58,407 | ($41,676) | ($263,100) | $169,320 | ($429,251) |
Compensation
Compensation data for this ministry has not been collected.
Response from ministry
GNPI is proud to be made up of local teams - Filipinos are GNPI-Philippines, Mexicans are GNPI-Mexico, and South Africans are Nomad-Johannesburg, etc. This allows us to share the gospel in the most relevant way possible.
The information below was provided to MinistryWatch by the ministry itself. It was last updated 5/5/2023. To update the information below, please email: [email protected]
History
In the 1960s, Ziden and Helen Nutt moved to Rhodesia (modern-day Zimbabwe) to serve as missionaries. They showed films to share the message of the Gospel, and while large crowds came to watch, they seemed to respond to the entertainment more than the message. Ziden stopped showing the films, but one day while they were working together on a building project, a local believer challenged Ziden to produce his own films. Ziden chuckled to himself, but this suggestion planted the seed for Good News Productions. Within the next few years, Ziden produced the first film strip which featured Africans and reflected local language and customs.
When he began showing it, the response was overwhelming. "We had two mobile units that were equipped with loudspeakers, and we travelled throughout the villages inviting people to come to our meetings and see our filmstrip with the Christian message," Nutt said. "Sometimes as many as 2,000 people would gather as we drove through those villages and we had over 1,000 people a year coming to Christ."
It was obvious that Gospel-centered, culturally relevant media had the potential to make a huge impact on evangelism. Missionaries from all over the world began contacting Ziden and requesting similar materials, customized to the languages and cultures where they worked. By 1975, Ziden and family made the difficult decision to return to the United States due to the health concerns of their youngest child. God turned this personal trial into something beneficial for the ministry when Good News Productions later became Good News Productions, International (GNPI). Our headquarters were established in Joplin, MO, where they remain today.
Through the 1970s and 1980s, we continued to produce resources for strategic evangelism, always preaching the Gospel message but contextualizing our methods for each culture and worldview. We began experimenting with solar technology and satellite systems, sending our first solar-powered projector to Thailand in 1981 and launching the ABLE satellite system in 1987.
Through solar packs, we could take a visual presentation of the Gospel into cultures populated by oral and visual learners and communicate the good news in a way that was meaningful and relevant to them. And because the projectors were solar-powered, we didn't need to haul generators or other power sources into these communities. Missionaries were using our resources to share the Gospel with unreached people groups in culturally relevant ways, maximizing their discipleship efforts.
As we looked into the potential of satellite technology in the 80s, GNPI was asked to partner with churches from 37 denominations to develop a groundbreaking system for training Christian leaders all over the world. We called this system ABLE (A Biblical Leadership Education), and we started broadcasting in 1987. At that time, more than 1,000 Bible lessons per month were being broadcast all over the world. Christians in India, North Africa, the Middle East, South America, and many other places were getting regular, Bible-based instruction, equipping them for service and leadership in their local contexts.
Satellite broadcasting paved the way for online streaming and we took advantage of that technology, too. We continued to explore every possible means for preaching the good news to every tribe and tongue in the medium that would be most relevant to them. We adopted the slogan, "Many cultures, many methods, one message."
By the early 90s, we had established two regional centers in India and Singapore, and over the next decade, we established seven regional centers across the globe. From these outposts, we could produce and distribute more content to more missionaries and church workers at a faster rate. Different regional centers specialized in different fields, producing television programs, radio broadcasts, discipleship resources, and other visual and audio presentations of the Gospel.
Through the 2000s, we continued establishing regional centers and began building grassroots media teams in strategic places, which we called Nomad teams. Nomad teams work to quickly identify cultural trends in different parts of the world. They produce media content and social media strategies that use these trends as in-roads to present the Gospel in culturally relevant ways.
Today, GNPI has grown to include 25 regional centers and Nomad teams in 16 countries. We've produced visual and audio media in more than 100 languages and shared the gospel with millions of people worldwide. With the growth of internet technology and social media, we're also developing platforms and strategies for engaging with different cultures and worldviews online.
Whatever the method, whatever the strategy, our goal is the same. GNPI exists to preach the good news to every tribe and tongue, in a way that is most meaningful and relevant to each of those people groups.
Program accomplishments
2,250 new projects created in 2021
43,663,391 engaged through content in 2021
1,261,152 discipled and baptized in 2021
Needs
100 LIGHTS CAMPAIGN - The primary goal of this initiative is to establish 100 media producers/teams worldwide in the next four years to create media content with the intention of making disciples who make disciples. By joining with GNPI, we'll be working together to empower the global church by training and equipping nationals as a light in their own culture through media. The 100 Lights campaign takes these skills to nationals in countries you might never visit and worldviews you will never fully understand. Contact GNPI at [email protected] to learn more!
PRAY - You know the power of prayer and the difference it makes. It unites people as they work to accomplish God's will. Our GNPI team needs your prayers more than ever as we take on new challenges, and we invite you to sign up to receive a few specific prayer requests.