Today's BP Ledger contains items from:

Campbellsville University

Hardin-Simmons University

International Mission Board

U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

Campbellsville hears message on missions, giving

By Tanner Royalty, student newswriter

CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. (Campbellsville University) -- "Why you? Why here? Why now?" the Rev. Scott Miller, pastor of Graceland Baptist Church in New Albany, Ind., asked those in attendance at Campbellsville University's weekly chapel service Oct. 10. Miller brought a message on missions, and taking the cause of Christ out into the whole world.

Miller asked, "Why was I born in America? Why were you born in America?"

He emphasized how we as a country have been blessed with so much but give so little.

Miller said 42 percent of the world population has never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ, approximately 156,000 people die every day without knowing Christ, 25,000 die every day from starvation or hunger related diseases, 3.6 million die every year from a lack of clean water, and 70 percent of unreached people groups are preliterate meaning they have not had the opportunity to learn to read and write.

Miller said, "Why have we been so blessed? Not to keep it to ourselves. The reason we as a country and as Christians have been blessed is to share our blessings and resources with the world."

He referred to Acts 17:26-27, "And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us."

He used these verses to emphasize that we were born for a reason and that we are not accidents. He said, "You are here right now for a reason, and you were born in this great country of abundance for a reason."

Miller said as Americans we keep 97.75 cents of every dollar received, give 2.15 cents to places where the gospel has and is already being proclaimed, but only give 1/10 of a cent to places where the gospel has never been shared. Miller asked, "What is wrong with us that we can only sacrifice a tenth of a penny? What has happened to our country? What has happened to our believers?"

America accounts for only 5 percent of the world's population but has 95 percent of the world's Christian resources, he said.

Fifty percent of the world's population today is under the age of 25, Miller said. "The millennial group has surpassed all groups before them but yet only 15 percent of the millennial group consider themselves Christ followers."

Miller challenged the audience and said, "Maybe today will be your beginning. Maybe you began to feel the calling to another country to serve the cause of Christ, but if not, you are right in the middle of one of the biggest mission fields."

Miller providing three verses with three challenges. He said, "Read Matthew 9:37-38 and pray. Read 2 Corinthians 9:13 and give, and last but not least, read Acts 16:9-10 and go tell the world about Jesus."

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Faculty Members Share Encouraging Data for Graduating Students

ABILENE, Texas (Hardin-Simmons University) -- As students prepare to graduate from Hardin-Simmons University in December, faculty members have encouraging news. In a recent opportunity to respond to a question regarding what recent graduates are doing, they say student acceptance into grad schools is high. Faculty members also say job placement rates in many professions is extremely encouraging. In some cases, faculty members offered data concerning beginning salaries.

Below are some of the responses from HSU faculty members.

Dr. Chris McNair, dean of the Holland School of Sciences and Mathematics, says, "One hundred percent of students majoring in the sciences last year were accepted into health professional programs for the 2012-2013 academic year. Graduated students were accepted to schools in medicine, pharmacy, physical therapy, veterinary medicine, podiatry, graduate-level nursing, physician's assistant (PA), and optometry."

Dr. Carol Hill, head of the department of speech-language pathology, broadens the scope of students, saying, "Over the past three years, 100% of the graduates from HSU's program who have applied to highly competitive graduate schools have been admitted.

"The students who sought employment had several job offers from which to select, both in the Abilene area and in larger cities in Texas," says Hill. "We receive emails and phone calls weekly from potential employers inquiring about students who can start working immediately."

Students participating in one of Holland's graduate programs have enjoyed 100% job placement since 1997, says Dr. Janelle O'Connell, director of the physical therapy grad program. "Median salary of PTs in Abilene is $68,000 with the average starting salary for PT's in Abilene at $60,000." O'Connell also says that HSU students' pass rate on the PT licensure examination has been 98% for the last five years, and HSU students' matriculation rate is 95.5%, which is higher than the national average.

In the Cynthia Ann Parker College of Liberal Arts, Melissa Milliorn, head of the department of social work, says, "Of our 2012 graduates, 72% are employed in the field of social work, 14% are continuing their education, and another 14% postponed their careers for various reasons." Among those students who have reported their beginning salaries to Milliorn, the highest salary is $33,000.

But primarily, Milliorn points to what the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is saying about the rapid growth of social work job opportunities. The website at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Community-and-Social-Service/Social-workers.htm reveals a median income of $42,480 per year and an anticipated 25% growth rate in the profession through 2020.

Milliorn says social work jobs are expected to increase from 650,500 jobs nationally to 821,700 jobs by 2020. She points out, "That's an increase of 161,200 social work jobs that will be added over the next seven years."

Milliorn says that the government information further indicates that social work is one of the fastest growing professions. "Basically, the government website statistically supports what we already know. We need more social workers and the only way to become one is to graduate with a degree in social work from an accredited program like ours here at HSU," says Milliorn.

Michael Monhollon, dean of HSU's Kelley College of Business, says that the KCOB surveys all its alumni one year after graduation and for each of the past two years more than 90% had jobs or were in graduate school or both.

Looking at these statistics more specifically, Monhollon says, "Last spring 36 business students graduated. Eighteen accepted job offers during their last semester and another six were accepted into graduate school before graduation. Three students contacted us over the summer to let us know they had landed jobs in their field."

Good job placement figures also come out of the Irvin School of Education. David Stuckey, head of the department of fitness and health sciences, says graduates in athletic training will have no trouble once they enter the job market. "One hundred percent of our graduates for, at least, the last five years are either employed or are in graduate school," says Stuckey.

Logsdon School of Theology offers the link below, showing the results of a questionnaire answered by students pertaining to the academic preparedness and the effectiveness of the Logsdon graduate programs. http://www.logsdonseminary.org/forms/EducationalEffectiveness.pdf.

Dr. Wayne Dorothy, director of bands and professor of music in the HSU School of Music and Fine Arts, says, "All of our music majors have been successful in finding the employment they sought, whether in music or in another field. Others have successfully pursued additional study in graduate school."

Results from a survey, compiled by the HSU Career Services Office on the post-graduation plans of students who graduated as late as May 2011, shows which businesses employed HSU grads (315 students replied to the questionnaire).

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ASIA PRAYER REQUESTS

SOUTH ASIA (IMB)--Brief items reported by South Asia News of the International Mission Board (http://www.go2southasia.org) on Nov. 8 include:

BANGLADESH. November is the month of the year when we focus on thankfulness in the United States. Most Americans have food to eat, a bed to sleep in, and a roof over their head. In Bangladesh, the majority of the people struggle to have these things. Over half of the population lives on less than a dollar a day. Please pray that they will be introduced to and accept the Bread of Life and that they will know that there is One who loves them and will provide for their needs. Please pray for those from the U.S. who are serving the Lord in Bangladesh, asking that they will have strength, wisdom and the fruit of the Spirit when they are faced daily (sometimes hourly) with the overwhelming amount of needs of people in Bangladesh.

BHUTAN. Many youth have migrated to India to do their upper level studies. Pray that while these young people are living in India they will be exposed to the Good News, accept the Truth and be equipped to share it with their families when they return home. Pray that the Holy Spirit would prepare the hearts of their families to embrace this new-found faith as their own and that house churches would spring forth throughout Bhutan.

DIASPORA. The rainy season has brought floods as usual to Myanmar, but this year, flooding has seemed particularly intense in and around the old capital. "A" has been regularly visiting villages around the old capital that are filled with Tamil people, and the floods this year have taken a terrible toll on their villages. Very deep waters have ruined food supplies and also made access to clean drinking water very difficult. A. and a cross-cultural worker have worked together, with help from Baptist Global Response, to provide water filters to approximately 500 families in this area, so they are able not only to have clean drinking water, but also to hear the Good News as the filters are distributed. Please lift up the five villages that A. has visited, asking that these floods will turn into an opportunity for more lives to be changed. Please lift up the follow-up ministry in this area, and pray that hearts will be open to the Good News.

INDIA. A worker in southern India writes,"Toward the end of a visit with 'F,' I extended an open invitation for her to come and visit me in my home. She graciously declined, explaining that her husband was very protective and would not let her out of the house. She said, 'If I come to visit you, you will hear him yelling and beating me through the walls.' My heart broke as I realized that not only does he protect her physically from the world, he also guards very closely what she follows spiritually. More than half of the Muslim population in Karnataka state are women. Please ask God to show us creative ways to share Jesus with this very protected, isolated segment of society."

MALDIVES. Father is moving in this beautiful island nation. Thought to be 100 percent Islamic, Father is drawing people unto Himself one by one. People are hearing the Good News or reading Truth in their own language. Pray that the Holy Spirit would draw men, women and children unto Himself and they would be strong and courageous to share the Good News with those around them. Pray that small groups of believers would gather throughout the Maldives to study His Word. Continued...