The Christian Chain
Bridging Denominational Barriers
The Christian Chain
EIN: 45-5320220
Mission
Through the creation of resources and the building of strategic partnerships, it is our mission to bring together quality resources that help the Christian Community work across denominational barriers to further the Kingdom of God.
Ruling year
2013
Director Executive
Mr. Christopher D.F. Warrington
Director of Operations
Mrs. Jennifer A. Warrington
Main address
3317 East Bell Road Suite #101-500
Phoenix, AZ 85032 USA
EIN
45-5320220
Religion
Basic and emergency aid
Community and economic development
Leadership development
Diversity and intergroup relations
Population served
Economically disadvantaged people
Christians
Adults
NTEE code
Christian (X20)
Emergency Assistance (Food, Clothing, Cash) (P60)
Religion Related, Spiritual Development N.E.C. (X99)
IRS subsection
501(c)(3) Public Charity
IRS filing requirement
This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990-N.
Tax forms
Communication
Programs and results
Reports and documents
Download annual reportsWhat we aim to solve
We strive for unity within the Church because we want to impact the world by addressing the complex moral, ethical, and spiritual challenges faced by individuals living in the world today. While church denominations are an inevitable side effect of a worldwide group of diverse believers, the discord within denominations is what The Christian Chain seeks to address. By unifying as one body, we can better represent Jesus to a troubled and lost world. The hope that anchors us is in the gospel of Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection. This hope drives us to reach out to others through various ministries that we know can bring his life-changing love and message to others.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Samaritan Bags
http://samaritanbags.com/
The Samaritan Bags project is an initiative by The Christian Chain to meet the needs of homeless individuals around Phoenix and throughout the United States. Christopher Warrington, a minister and CEO of The Christian Chain, felt a calling from the Holy Spirit to meet the needs of the homeless community, and Samaritan Bags was born.
Homelessness stems from any number of problems – lack of mental and physical healthcare, lack of access to affordable housing, and program shifts from shelters to housing programs. On a given night in Maricopa County, there are over 6,600 homeless either sleeping on the streets or in shelters. Given the current health crisis sparked by COVID-19, there are real concerns that this number will climb in 2020.
Often, the average person does not give to the homeless they encounter by chance, either because they are not prepared and cannot give them anything, or out of concern that money given may be used for things other than necessities.
The Samaritan Bags program partners churches and community organizations to pack bags with non-perishable food and personal care items. These bags can be donated outright to organizations like homeless shelters or rescue missions, or can be carried around in volunteers’ cars in readiness for chance encounters.
Like the Samaritan in the parable, we should always be prepared to help those in need, no matter our differences and no matter their current living situation.
What’s different about Samaritan Bags is that in addition to personal care and non-perishable items being on-hand, we also seek to address their eternal needs by providing an outreach Bible. We also encourage packers to provide information on local health and housing resources, and churches to connect them to ongoing care.
Our goal is to provide community help for those in need by addressing their immediate, continued, and eternal needs.
Partners in Unity
http://www.partnersinunity.com/
As a project of The Christian Chain, Inc., it is our goal to be bridge builders among the many Christian denominations seeking to enhance the long-term health of the Church by supporting church leadership and interdenominational cooperation.
We seek to foster an increased discipline of unity in the corporate Body of Christ through resourcing and equipping church leaders and their congregations with educational material, devotional content, and community outreach activities.
We envision a world in which Christian churches work across denominational barriers, maintaining the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. We admit there has been a constant struggle against unity for millennia; yet, it is a command we are called to fulfill. We also acknowledge that we will never have complete and perfect unity until Jesus Christ returns. However, Scripture clearly tells us to endeavor for unity and to this end, Partners in Unity, as part of The Christian Chain, feels called to help build bridges; connecting people to people, churches to churches, and the world to Jesus Christ.
Prayer Nook
Prayer Nook is a ministry by The Christian Chain (thechristianchain.org) that provides a means to journal, request prayers, pray with your friends, and strengthen your prayer life all in one easy-to-use app. Pray for those in your feed, share personal prayers within your inner circle, and journal prayers in your own private notebook.
Want to make a prayer group with your church or study? Prayer Nook lets you do that too! Invite members, create groups for your organization, and designate your own inner circle for a small group or Bible study.
Got a prayer request? Share them as privately or as publicly as you'd like.
Got an answered prayer to celebrate? Our prayer archive function lets you visit old prayers and update others on how God has answered you.
Heis Soma
One Global Login
At The Christian Chain, our mission is to provide actionable ministry resources and programs that cross denominations and distance, thereby unifying the Church across the United States and worldwide.
Heis Soma is our Single Sign-on service (SSO) and your one-and-done entry point into our ministry sites. With this log-in system, you can access all of our programs and resources without worrying about multiple passwords. You will be able to track giving, stay updated on events, and manage subscriptions all with one password.
The meaning behind Heis Soma:
In the original Greek, heis soma means "one body." The reason that we chose Heis Soma as the name for this resource is as a reflection of being one body. Through this system, our members can have one password as a central point of login for the various ministries of The Christian Chain; though there are plans to open this login system to other ministries, churches, and Christian resources in the future.
Where we work
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Global
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North America
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Phoenix, AZ
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United States
Videos
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
The Christian Chain is unique in its function and mission because we seek to connect people to people, churches to churches, and each other to the world and Jesus Christ. We are called in service to the church and surrounding communities to bring the global Church to unity.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Samaritan Bags and Partners in Unity are the two programs that we have designed to achieve mission advancement both inside the church and externally through community outreach.
Our hallmark program, Samaritan Bags, partners with churches and organizations to prepare bags with essential items for those experiencing homelessness. Since 2013, we have seen lives changed, and congregations and small groups unify through outreach and service to the homeless.
Partners in Unity is a pilot program that serves church leaders and their congregations by providing resources that identify biblical unity areas within the congregation that need improvement. Using scripture as a foundation, we use surveys and numeric data to create action plans for churches that foster unity within their congregations.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Currently, The Christian Chain has eight full-time paid staff.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Our main ministry, The Chrisitan Chain, launched in 2013 and was rebranded in July 2020, with our Samaritan Bags Ministry launching in 2013 and undergoing a rebrand in 2020. To date, our packing events have provided over 4,640 bags to those in need. In October of 2020, we plan to launch our prayer app, Prayer Nook. In 2020, we plan to initiate our first congregational unity sessions for our Partners in Unity program and prepare our initial ideas for our Partners in Unity Conference, tentatively scheduled for June 2021.
10 packing events and 4,140-4640 bags total:
1. Phoenix Seminary for students, packed 35 bags
2. SBC Club 56 Ministry 70 bags
3. Giving Hope Worldwide, packed at SCA – 1,000 bags
4. SBC High School Ministry 150 bags
5. Phoenix Seminary for students, packed 100 bags
6. Kiwanis Club, packed at Kitchen on the Street – 1,500-2,000 bags
7. Girl Scout Troop 2933 – 20 bags
8. Shiloh Christian Church – 1000 bags
9. SCA Local Mission Team – 250 bags
10. SBC Small Group Experience – 15 bags
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
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Financials
Financial documents
Download audited financialsRevenue vs. expenses: breakdown
Liquidity in 2021 info
0.00
Months of cash in 2021 info
0.1
Fringe rate in 2021 info
38%
Funding sources info
Assets & liabilities info
Financial data
The Christian Chain
Balance sheetFiscal Year: Jun 01 - May 31
The balance sheet gives a snapshot of the financial health of an organization at a particular point in time. An organization's total assets should generally exceed its total liabilities, or it cannot survive long, but the types of assets and liabilities must also be considered. For instance, an organization's current assets (cash, receivables, securities, etc.) should be sufficient to cover its current liabilities (payables, deferred revenue, current year loan, and note payments). Otherwise, the organization may face solvency problems. On the other hand, an organization whose cash and equivalents greatly exceed its current liabilities might not be putting its money to best use.
Fiscal Year: Jun 01 - May 31
This snapshot of The Christian Chain’s financial trends applies Nonprofit Finance Fund® analysis to data hosted by GuideStar. While it highlights the data that matter most, remember that context is key – numbers only tell part of any story.
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Business model indicators
| Profitability info | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Unrestricted surplus (deficit) before depreciation | $153,885 |
| As % of expenses | 43.3% |
| Unrestricted surplus (deficit) after depreciation | $153,885 |
| As % of expenses | 43.3% |
| Revenue composition info | |
|---|---|
| Total revenue (unrestricted & restricted) | $390,715 |
| Total revenue, % change over prior year | 0.0% |
| Program services revenue | 0.0% |
| Membership dues | 0.0% |
| Investment income | 0.0% |
| Government grants | 72.0% |
| All other grants and contributions | 28.0% |
| Other revenue | 0.0% |
| Expense composition info | |
|---|---|
| Total expenses before depreciation | $355,682 |
| Total expenses, % change over prior year | 0.0% |
| Personnel | 93.7% |
| Professional fees | 0.0% |
| Occupancy | 0.0% |
| Interest | 0.0% |
| Pass-through | 0.0% |
| All other expenses | 6.3% |
| Full cost components (estimated) info | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Total expenses (after depreciation) | $355,682 |
| One month of savings | $29,640 |
| Debt principal payment | $0 |
| Fixed asset additions | $0 |
| Total full costs (estimated) | $385,322 |
Capital structure indicators
| Liquidity info | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Months of cash | 0.1 |
| Months of cash and investments | 0.1 |
| Months of estimated liquid unrestricted net assets | 5.9 |
| Balance sheet composition info | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Cash | $3,562 |
| Investments | $0 |
| Receivables | $922 |
| Gross land, buildings, equipment (LBE) | $0 |
| Accumulated depreciation (as a % of LBE) | 0.0% |
| Liabilities (as a % of assets) | 0.0% |
| Unrestricted net assets | $176,001 |
| Temporarily restricted net assets | N/A |
| Permanently restricted net assets | N/A |
| Total restricted net assets | $0 |
| Total net assets | $176,001 |
Key data checks
| Key data checks info | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Material data errors | No |
Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Documents
Director Executive
Mr. Christopher D.F. Warrington
Christopher has spent the majority of his adult life as an advocate for Church Unity and interdenominational cooperation. God laid the idea for The Christian Chain on his heart in 2000 when he was in college and started to see the strong need for education and partnership among Christian denominations. In 2003, he received his bachelor's degree in Communications with an emphasis on Deaf Culture and minor degrees in Computer Science and Biblical Studies from Biola University; and in 2013, his master's degree in Divinity with an emphasis on Leadership Development from Phoenix Seminary.
Director of Operations
Jennifer Warrington
Jennifer, who goes by Jenny, and Christopher married in 2010 and Jenny has lent her insight, wisdom, organization, and prayer strength to his work. In 2020, Jenny took more of an active role in work at The Christian Chain taking on the role of Director of Operations and overseeing the rebranding and expansion of the Samaritan Bags ministry. With her extensive educational background in the health field, receiving multiple bachelor's degrees and a master's degree, Jenny also lends great insight and assistance in this next phase of the Samaritan Bags expansion moving into the hospitals.
Number of employees
Source: IRS Form 990
The Christian Chain
Officers, directors, trustees, and key employeesSOURCE: IRS Form 990
Compensation data
There are no highest paid employees recorded for this organization.
The Christian Chain
Board of directorsas of 05/08/2024
Board of directors data
Mr. Christopher Warrington
The Christian Chain, Inc.
Term: 2012 -
Mike DeMoss
Jon Steen
James Cooper
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
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- Financial statements for 2014, 2013
- Letter of Determination
- Officer and/or Employee data for 2021
- Board of Directors data for 2024
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