BIG CREEK | Bekki

"The third time he [Jesus] said to him, 'Simon son of John, do you love me?'

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, 'Do you love me?' He said, 'Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.'

Jesus said, 'Feed my sheep.'” – John 2:15

The nursing home was the last place she wanted to go. Other people had gone during the week, but she deliberately had not.

On the day her family was cleaning up the dump, she felt a nudging. The work at the dump was not safe for kids. She wanted to take her daughters to serve somewhere else that would be meaningful and purposeful. No one had gone to the nursing home that day. And there was another mom who had visited the nursing home earlier in the week, willing to go again with her own daughter.

She tried to prepare her girls for what they might see – the people, the medical things, the conditions.

But she was not prepared for what she saw: Her girls walking into rooms without hesitation; her girls approaching people without fear; her girls reading Psalms, painting nails, and praying for people. Her girls boldly sharing the love of Jesus.

And while her girls painted nails, she listened and held hands as people shared their stories. One woman asked if they’d like to see her art. “Would it make you happy to show us your art?”

“It would make me happy, and I think it would make you happy too.”

She had just read through the gospel of John, and she remembered how Jesus connected loving Him with feeding His sheep. “Do you love Me?” Hold my hand, listen to me, look at my art, paint my nails. It really is that simple.

Bekki Anderson (as told to Kelli Whitehead), Big Creek Spring 2026