Probe Ministries International 
The information on this page was last updated 3/28/2024. If you see errors or omissions, please email: [email protected]
Summary
Probe Ministries International ("Probe") presents the Gospel to communities, nationally and internationally, by providing life-long opportunities to integrate faith and learning through balanced, biblically-based scholarship, educating people how to love God with their minds and equipping them to engage their world for Christ.
Contact information
Mailing address:
Probe Ministries
2001 W. Plano Pkwy
Ste. 2000
Plano, TX 75075
Website: www.probe.org
Phone: (972) 941-4565
Email: [email protected]
Organization details
EIN: 751416858
CEO/President: Kerby Anderson
Chairman: Kerby Anderson
Board size: 7
Founder: James F. Williams Jr. and Jon Buell
Ruling year: 1973
Tax deductible: Yes
Fiscal year end: 06/30
Member of ECFA: Yes
Member of ECFA since: 1986
Purpose
Ministry Outreaches
- National and international youth and adult Mind Games Conferences attended by more than 10,000 participants since its inception.
- Probe Radio Program, heard on over 300 stations daily, reaching 1 million plus people each week.
- Probe staff members are interviewed regularly on national and international radio networks with listening audiences in the millions.
- Web site resource with approximately 2000 resources presenting a biblical perspective, including the ability to hear the Probe Radio program or podcast. The web site reaches over 2 million new visitors each year.
- Ongoing research to address today's issues through honest and respected Christian scholarship.
Mission statement
Probe's mission is to present the Gospel to communities, nationally and internationally, by providing life-long opportunities to integrate faith and learning through balanced, biblically based scholarship, training people to love God by renewing their minds and equipping the Church to engage the world for Christ.
Statement of faith
The final authority of our beliefs is the Bible, God's infallible written Word, the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments. We believe that the Bible was uniquely, verbally, and fully inspired by the Holy Spirit, and that it was without error in the original manuscripts. It is the supreme and final authority in all matters on which it speaks (2 Tim 3:16,17; 2 Peter 1:21; 1 Cor 2:13, 10:11; John 10:35).
We explicitly affirm our belief in these basic Bible teachings:
1. There is one true God, eternally existing in three persons- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit-each of whom possesses equally all the attributes of Deity and the characteristics of personality (Matt 28:19; John 10:30; Acts 5:3,4; 2 Cor 13:14).
2. God the Father, Creator of heaven and earth, is the functional head of the Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). He sent the Son to obtain satisfaction for divine justice and to proclaim reconciliation. The Spirit He sent to teach truth. He is spoken of as the Father of all creation, of angels, of Israel, of believers, and of Christ (John 14-17, 20:17; Job 1:16; Psalm 103:13).
3. Jesus is God, the living Word, wh o became flesh through His miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit and His virgin birth. Hence, He is perfect Deity and true humanity united in one person forever. He lived a sinless life, and voluntarily atoned for the sins of men by dying on the cross as their substitute, thus satisfying divine justice and accomplishing salvation for all who trust in Him alone. He rose from the dead in the same body, though glorified, in which He lived and died. He ascended bodily into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God the Father, and there He, the only mediator between God and man, continually makes intercession for His own (Matt 1:16,20,23; Luke 1:34; Heb 4:15; 2 Cor 5:21; 1 Cor 15; Acts 1:9-11; 1 Peter 2:5-9; 1 John 2:1).
4. The Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, has come into the world to reveal and glorify Christ and to apply the saving work of Christ to men. He convicts and draws sinners to Christ, imparts new life to them, continually indwells them from the moment of spiritual birth, baptizes them into the body of Christ, and seals them until the day of Redemption (John 16:8-11; Titus 3:5; 1 Cor 6:19; Rom 8:9b; 1 Cor 12:13; Eph 5:18; Gal 5:22-23).
5. Man was originally created in the image of God. He sinned by disobeying God; thus, he was alienated from his Creator. The historic fall brought all mankind under divine condemnation. Man's nature is corrupted, and he is thus totally unable to please God. Every man is in need of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit (Gen 1:26-27; Eph 2:1; Rom 1:18, 3:20, 7:21-25, 5:12).
6. The salvation of man is wholly a work of God's free grace, and is not the result, in whole or in part, of human works or goodness or religious ceremony. God imputes His righteousness to those who put their faith in Christ alone for their salvation, and thereby justifies them in His sight (Rom 6:23; Eph 2:8,9; John 3:16; Titus 3:5-8).
It is the privilege of all who are born again of the Spirit to be assured of their salvation from the very moment in which they trust Christ as their Savior. This assurance is not based upon any kind of human merit, but is produced by the witness of the Holy Spirit, who confirms in the believer the testimony of God in His written Word. The Holy Spirit's fullness, power, and guidance are appropriated in the believer's life by faith (Rom 5:9-10, 8:1, 29- 30, 38-39; John 5:24, 10:27-30, 14:16; 1 Tim 1:12; Phil 1:6; Heb 7:25; Jude 24).
Every believer is called to live so in the power of the indwelling Spirit that he will not fulfill the lust of the flesh, but will bear fruit to the glory of God. The Scriptures set out the principles and rules of the Christian life (Rom 12:1,2; Gal 5:16- 26; 2 Cor 6:14).
7. Jesus Christ is the head of the Church, His Body, which is composed of all men, living and dead, who have been joined to Him through saving faith. God admonishes His people to assemble together regularly for worship, for participation in ordinances, for edification through the Scriptures, and for mutual encouragement (1 Cor 12:12-13; Col 1:18; Eph 2:15-16).
8. At physical death, the believer enters immediately into eternal, conscious fellowship with the Lord and awaits the resurrection of the body to everlasting glory and blessing (1 Cor 15:12ff; 2 Cor 5:1-10; Phil 1:23; John 12:26).
At physical death, the unbeliever enters immediately into eternal, conscious separation from the Lord and awaits the resurrection of the body to everlasting judgment and condemnation (Eph 2:12; Rom 3:23, 5:12; Matt 25:31-46; Rev 20:11-15).
Jesus Christ will come again to the earth-personally, visibly, and bodily-to consummate history and fulfill the plan of God (Rev 19:11-16; Zech 14:4-11; 1 Thess 1:9-10).
9. The Lord Jesus Christ commanded all believers to proclaim the gospel throughout the world and to disciple men of every nation. The fulfillment of that Great Commission requires that all worldly and personal ambitions be subordinated to a total commitment to "Him who loved us and gave Himself for us" (Matt 28:19; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:47-48).
We accept those large areas of doctrinal teaching on which, historically, there has been general agreement among all true Christians. Because of the specialized calling of our ministry, we desire to allow for freedom of conviction on other doctrinal matters, provided that any interpretation is based upon the Bible alone, and that no such interpretation shall become an issue which hinders the ministry to which God has called us, or our fellowship together.
Donor confidence score
Transparency grade
A
To understand our transparency grade, click here.
Financial efficiency ratings
Sector: Christian Growth
| Category | Rating | Overall rank | Sector rank |
| Overall efficiency rating | | 282 of 1107 | 15 of 63 |
| Fund acquisition rating | | 910 of 1108 | 50 of 63 |
| Resource allocation rating | | 177 of 1108 | 13 of 63 |
| Asset utilization rating | | 127 of 1107 | 9 of 63 |
Financial ratios
| Funding ratios | Sector median | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
Return on fundraising efforts Return on fundraising efforts = Fundraising expense / Total contributions | 8% | 10% | 7% | 8% | 9% | 8% |
Fundraising cost ratio Fundraising cost ratio = Fundraising expense / Total revenue | 5% | 10% | 7% | 8% | 9% | 8% |
Contributions reliance Contributions reliance = Total contributions / Total revenue | 85% | 99% | 100% | 100% | 99% | 98% |
Fundraising expense ratio Fundraising expense ratio = Fundraising expense / Total expenses | 5% | 9% | 8% | 7% | 8% | 8% |
Other revenue reliance Other revenue reliance = Total other revenue / Total revenue | 15% | 1% | 0% | 0% | 1% | 2% |
| Operating ratios | Sector median | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
Program expense ratio Program expense ratio = Program services / Total expenses | 81% | 85% | 85% | 80% | 86% | 86% |
Spending ratio Spending ratio = Total expenses / Total revenue | 100% | 113% | 87% | 111% | 101% | 97% |
Program output ratio Program output ratio = Program services / Total revenue | 79% | 96% | 74% | 89% | 87% | 84% |
Savings ratio Savings ratio = Surplus (deficit) / Total revenue | 0% | -13% | 13% | -11% | -1% | 3% |
Reserve accumulation rate Reserve accumulation rate = Surplus (deficit) / Net assets | 2% | -56% | 42% | -46% | -4% | 8% |
General and admin ratio General and admin ratio = Management and general expense / Total expenses | 12% | 6% | 7% | 13% | 6% | 6% |
| Investing ratios | Sector median | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
Total asset turnover Total asset turnover = Total expenses / Total assets | 1.05 | 2.16 | 2.41 | 3.84 | 2.64 | 2.79 |
Degree of long-term investment Degree of long-term investment = Total assets / Total current assets | 1.44 | 1.82 | 1.01 | 1.02 | 1.02 | 1.04 |
Current asset turnover Current asset turnover = Total expenses / Total current assets | 1.65 | 3.94 | 2.45 | 3.93 | 2.70 | 2.90 |
| Liquidity ratios | Sector median | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
Current ratio Current ratio = Total current assets / Total current liabilities | 10.86 | 3.41 | 8.23 | 6.05 | 9.57 | 12.63 |
Current liabilities ratio Current liabilities ratio = Total current liabilities / Total current assets | 0.09 | 0.29 | 0.12 | 0.17 | 0.10 | 0.08 |
Liquid reserve level Liquid reserve level = (Total current assets - Total current liabilities) / (Total expenses / 12) | 5.83 | 2.15 | 4.31 | 2.55 | 3.98 | 3.81 |
| Solvency ratios | Sector median | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
Liabilities ratio Liabilities ratio = Total liabilities / Total assets | 15% | 54% | 12% | 16% | 10% | 8% |
Debt ratio Debt ratio = Debt / Total assets | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
Reserve coverage ratio Reserve coverage ratio = Net assets / Total expenses | 78% | 21% | 36% | 22% | 34% | 33% |
Financials
| Balance sheet | |||||
| Assets | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| Cash | $180,965 | $263,722 | $159,685 | $218,532 | $217,170 |
| Receivables, inventories, prepaids | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Short-term investments | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other current assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total current assets | $180,965 | $263,722 | $159,685 | $218,532 | $217,170 |
| Long-term investments | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Fixed assets | $0 | $0 | $213 | $1,453 | $4,377 |
| Other long-term assets | $148,947 | $3,750 | $3,750 | $3,750 | $3,750 |
| Total long-term assets | $148,947 | $3,750 | $3,963 | $5,203 | $8,127 |
| Total assets | $329,912 | $267,472 | $163,648 | $223,735 | $225,297 |
| Liabilities | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| Payables and accrued expenses | $53,102 | $32,040 | $26,397 | $22,846 | $17,196 |
| Other current liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total current liabilities | $53,102 | $32,040 | $26,397 | $22,846 | $17,196 |
| Debt | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Due to (from) affiliates | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other long-term liabilities | $126,171 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total long-term liabilities | $126,171 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total liabilities | $179,273 | $32,040 | $26,397 | $22,846 | $17,196 |
| Net assets | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| Without donor restrictions | $150,639 | $235,432 | $137,251 | $200,889 | $208,101 |
| With donor restrictions | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Net assets | $150,639 | $235,432 | $137,251 | $200,889 | $208,101 |
| Revenues and expenses | |||||
| Revenue | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| Total contributions | $619,410 | $743,313 | $564,093 | $577,539 | $633,930 |
| Program service revenue | $7,785 | $319 | $393 | $4,771 | $12,911 |
| Membership dues | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Investment income | $1,335 | $99 | $196 | $335 | $117 |
| Other revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total other revenue | $9,120 | $418 | $589 | $5,106 | $13,028 |
| Total revenue | $628,530 | $743,731 | $564,682 | $582,645 | $646,958 |
| Expenses | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| Program services | $605,154 | $550,232 | $502,002 | $506,291 | $541,861 |
| Management and general | $45,995 | $44,778 | $81,055 | $34,006 | $36,313 |
| Fundraising | $62,173 | $50,540 | $45,263 | $49,560 | $51,385 |
| Total expenses | $713,322 | $645,550 | $628,320 | $589,857 | $629,559 |
| Change in net assets | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 |
| Surplus (deficit) | ($84,792) | $98,181 | ($63,638) | ($7,212) | $17,399 |
| Other changes in net assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total change in net assets | ($84,792) | $98,181 | ($63,638) | ($7,212) | $17,399 |
Compensation
| Name | Title | Compensation |
| Kerby Anderson | President | $131,300 |
| Raymond Bohlin | Vice President | $107,400 |
Compensation data as of: 6/30/2023
Response from ministry
No response has been provided by this ministry.
The information below was provided to MinistryWatch by the ministry itself. It was last updated 3/28/2024. To update the information below, please email: [email protected]
History
Probe Ministries was founded in 1973 by James F. Williams Jr. and Jon Buell, who sought to form a ministry that would bridge the frontier between the agonizing questions man asks and the profound answers the Gospel offers. As the organization has served Christ faithfully for over 40 years, Probe now stands ready to dramatically expand its ministry for Christ during the next 40 years.
Program accomplishments
- National and international youth and adult Mind Games Conferences attended by more than 10,000 participants since its inception.
- Probe Radio Program, heard on over 300 stations daily, reaching 1 million plus people each week.
- Probe staff members are interviewed regularly on national and international radio networks with listening audiences in the millions.
- Web site resource with approximately 2000 resources presenting a biblical perspective, including the ability to hear the Probe Radio program or podcast. The web site reaches over 2 million new visitors each year.
- Ongoing research to address today's issues through honest and respected Christian scholarship.