Our Meager Offerings

A Reading from the Holy Gospel According to John
     Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee.
     A large crowd followed him,
     because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick.
     Jesus went up on the mountain,
     and there he sat down with his disciples.
     The Jewish feast of Passover was near.
     When Jesus raised his eyes
     and saw that a large crowd was coming to him,
     he said to Philip,
     “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?”
     He said this to test him,
     because he himself knew what he was going to do.
     Philip answered him,
     “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough
     for each of them to have a little.”
     One of his disciples,
     Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him,
     “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish;
     but what good are these for so many?”
     Jesus said, “Have the people recline.”
     Now there was a great deal of grass in that place.
     So the men reclined, about five thousand in number.
     Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks,
     and distributed them to those who were reclining,
     and also as much of the fish as they wanted.
     When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples,
     “Gather the fragments left over,
     so that nothing will be wasted.”
     So they collected them,
     and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments
     from the five barley loaves
     that had been more than they could eat.
     When the people saw the sign he had done, they said,
     “This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.”
     Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off
     to make him king,
     he withdrew again to the mountain alone.


     “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?” (Jn 6:9) This is a relatable question... “but what good are these for so many?” What good can I do that will actually impact others? I am just one weak, broken person.
 
     I often doubt that I have what it takes to share God’s love with others, but the Lord has taught me many times that when I give Him my meager five barley loaves and two fish, He can multiply it. One reminder of this experience was back in January while I was serving with NET Ministries. NET is an organization of young adults who travel around the country to lead retreats for middle school and high school students. During one of these retreats, I was leading a small group of five girls. Small groups were hard for me especially when the girls were quiet because I am not a talkative person. This group was especially quiet and difficult to have conversation with, and I started worrying about how I would fill the small group time when the girls would only respond to my questions with one-word answers. I was relieved when the retreat ended because it had been particularly hard. I doubted that the girls in my small group were impacted by the retreat in any way. However, the next day some of my teammates were approached by a lady who told them that her granddaughter had attended the retreat the previous day and she had never seen her granddaughter so excited about anything. And guess what? Her granddaughter was one of the girls in my small group! Even though it had not seemed like she was investing in the retreat, the Lord was multiplying myself and my team’s meager offerings into great spiritual nourishment for this girl.
 
     When Jesus multiplies, He does not multiply so that there is just enough for each person to be satisfied. He gives an abundance of loaves and fish to the crowd. They had twelve baskets of leftovers! I like to use the word overabundance just to help me comprehend how generously God gives to us. He does not just satisfy us but gives until we are overflowing. And yet we still doubt His ability to work in us and through us. Andrew could have doubted that the five loaves and two fish were even worth mentioning to Jesus since they were obviously not enough to feed the crowd. But he still brought the meager offering to Jesus, and that meager offering became an overabundant meal.
 
     So, bring Jesus your gifts, your desires to share His love, your doubts, and your sins. Place them in his hands and allow him to multiply them into an overabundance of His love, mercy, virtue, and grace in your life.
 
     This week, take some time to pray with these questions: What is one aspect of your life that you are doubting God can use for good? Reflect on a time that God did much more than you asked of Him or even imagined Him doing. Is there a gift in your life you are afraid to share because you think it is too small or an unimportant gift?


About the Author: Born and raised in Baton Rouge, Elizabeth Talbot grew up seeped in the rich culture and traditions of the Catholic faith. Starting in the 5th grade, Elizabeth began taking part in youth groups and always had a love for attending bible studies, retreats and conferences. Another passion of hers growing up was ballet, and performed in Baton Rouge’s production of The Nutcracker on multiple occasions. In 2016, Elizabeth  moved to Ruston, LA, to attend Louisiana Tech to pursue a degree in chemical engineering. After graduating, she felt called to do a year of service before beginning her career and served with NET for the 2020-2021 school year. In her free time, Elizabeth enjoys dancing, cooking/baking and creating art. 
Who is your favorite saint at the moment and why? Blessed Imelda is my confirmation Saint and she’s still a good friend of mine. She is the patron Saint of first communicants because she understood the awesomeness of Eucharist & I’m always asking her to help me understand better and love Jesus in the Eucharist. 
What is your favorite smell? Coffee. Always. I like the taste of it, but I like the smell even more. 
What is a random life hack you have? Since I was on NET and I lived out of a suitcase for 9 months I learned how to pack. My new favorite way to fold clothes is using the KonMari method and then stacking clothes horizontally instead of vertically so I can see all of my options. I thought I’d only fold clothes this way while on the road, but I have reorganized my dresser at home because it works so well!

Learn More About Red Stick Catholics


The Well is a weekly reflection series from Red Stick Catholics that was created to allow young adults from the Diocese of Baton Rouge to reveal how God is speaking to them through prayer and Scripture. Each reflection contains the upcoming Sunday’s Gospel, a reflection written by a young adult from the Diocese of Baton Rouge and prompts for how to pray with the Gospel and reflection during the week. If you are interested in writing a reflection, please email Nicole at [email protected].