Our Pastor

Pastor Jon Keeling was born in 1977 to a missionary family while they were traveling and raising support to serve in Alaska. Shortly afterward, he and his parents moved to Alaska, where they spent a total of 18 years planting churches, conducting youth camps, and preaching the Gospel in remote villages. During that time, they also served for 18 months in the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, where his father helped a struggling church until illness forced the family to leave the islands.

At the age of five, Pastor Jon trusted Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. While some may question whether a child that young can truly understand salvation, every time Satan has tried to cause him to doubt, the Lord has faithfully brought him back to that moment when, as a young boy, he placed his faith in Christ as his Lord and Savior.

Pastor Jon married his wife, Jodi, in August of 2005. Together, the Lord has blessed them with two wonderful children, Jon Caden and Isabella.

In March 2006, Pastor Jon surrendered to God's call to preach. Two years later, the Lord led the Keelings to establish Shunem Ministries, a construction-based ministry dedicated to building and remodeling churches, as well as missionaries' and pastors' homes. Even while serving in missions, God continually placed a burden on Pastor Jon's heart to one day pastor a local church. He trusted that, in the Lord's perfect timing, God would clearly reveal where He wanted their family to serve.

In 2017, while working on a building project at Lenox Baptist Church in Lenox, Tennessee, the Lord confirmed to the Keelings that He was leading them from missions into the pastorate. Soon afterward, they answered God's call to Antioch Baptist Church in Wynne, Arkansas, where they faithfully served for more than nine wonderful years. During their time at Antioch, the Lord allowed them to build lasting friendships, watch lives changed through the Gospel, and experience the joy of shepherding a church family they came to deeply love. Although leaving Antioch was not an easy decision, the Lord made it clear that He was leading them in a new direction, and they followed His call by faith.

In April 2026, God graciously led the Keelings back to Lenox Baptist Church—the very place where Pastor Jon first sensed God's call to pastor while serving on that building project years earlier. Returning to Dyer County has been a tremendous blessing and a reminder of God's faithful guidance. The Keeling family is truly honored to serve the people of Lenox Baptist Church and the surrounding community. They look forward with great anticipation to what God has in store as they faithfully preach His Word, strengthen families, and seek to reach Dyer County with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.