The online home for the writings of Keelan Cook. A website for those who love the church and its mission.
For the last several months, I have watched a new church building being built on the road to my house. Recently, the builders installed the church’s new sign, and I was a bit surprised. Perhaps the better word for my reaction was underwhelmed. In ...
In a job like mine, you hear stories about the church. A student serving in their first church explains to me the conflict threatening to split his church. Of course, none of this was disclosed during the search and candidate process. A consultant...
I recently stumbled across an article at The Gospel Coalition that caught my attention. The article, titled “The Increasing Value of Christian Testimonies”, resonated. In fact, I make similar claims in my Christian missions courses at the seminary...
Sending global missionaries is one of my favorite topics of conversation with pastors and church leaders. Having been an international missionary myself, it always does my heart good when a pastor or church leader starts asking questions about how...
I initially pulled this book list together during the pandemic a few years ago. Back then, all kinds of posts were appearing that recommended book lists for people to consider during our global shut-in. I even wrote one suggesting you use this ...
This is the last day of my seminar, and today I wanted to share one final post from the archives before I get back to writing. This one is from 2010, and shares a fundamental shift in my thinking about spiritual gifts. A couple of months ago, I r...
I like to set things on fire. I blame my father. When I was a little kid, we were always lighting things on fire… and then he taught me how how to make homemade fireworks. But that is another story. I may enjoy the warm glow and soft crackle of ...
In the last year, I have been invited to a whole lot of events. Perhaps in Africa it is good luck to have the goofy looking, white guy at your celebration, or maybe I am unwittingly part of the entertainment. Think of it like having a chimpanzee a...
I have a confession. I have become a Facebook stalker. It all started out innocent enough I guess. Occasionally glancing at photo albums from friends trips, until one day, I caught myself purposely seeking out the Info tab of some friends to see i...
Ephesus was kind of a big deal. Think of it as the “New York” of ancient Asia Minor. With a population of 400,000 people during the first century AD, it was the second largest city in the world after Rome. It was the political and economic center,...
I am on vacation. Some friends of mine and I got this ridiculous idea a year ago to galavant across Turkey (ancient Asia Minor) and see as much of the New Testament as possible. Last week, this idea became a reality. In the last 10 days, I have w...
I serve as the George Liele Director of the Center for Great Commission Studies and as a professor of Christian Missions at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.
I also serve as Assistant Professor of Christian Missions at the seminary. Previously, I served as the Associate Director for the Union Baptist Association in Houston, TX.
My areas of focus cover both North American and International missions. I teach and write on church renewal and replanting as well as developing healthy sending culture in churches. I have a passion for mobilizing the church to the nations, and a love for missions history.
I lead the Peoples Next Door project, which is an initiative to equip local churches in North America to engage in cross-cultural missions among the least-reached peoples that now live in our communities. I’ve been a church planter in West Africa with the IMB and facilitated ethnographic research in Washington, DC with NAMB.
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