Louis L’Amour said, “Some say opportunity knocks only once, but that’s not true. Opportunity knocks all the time. But you have to be ready for it ….”

My wife and I ate some incredible clam chowder the other night at a chowder house we like to visit. It’s not a fancy looking place; more like a blue plate special kind of diner, you might say. And …. I missed an opportunity.

I like to think of myself as ‘aware’ or having my antenna up when I’m out in the public. But I must confess that sometimes, I am not as aware as I could be. As we sat looking at an extensive menu, our server came for our drink orders. She hurried as she approached our table, apologizing for our wait. ‘We’ve been really busy tonight,” she said.

I don’t know what possessed me to do it, But I said … what I saw. And I sawweariness in her face. “You look tired,” is what I said.

And then, in a 30-45 second soliloquy, she told me she was tired, and that she was working 2 nearly full-time jobs, and that the Corona virus had caused her to lose her business — everything she had worked for for twenty years. “Gone,” she said, “just like that.” And she snapped her fingers.

Later, my wife asked her for some extra napkins for our table. She said, “Ask and you shall receive.” I looked into the face of the tired one, who had lost what she had worked for for twenty years, and I asked a question: ‘Where did thatcome from?’

‘What?’ she said. ‘The quote,’ I said. ‘Do you know where that came from?’

‘No,’ she said. ‘It’s just something I say.’

I told her it came from the bible, she said, “Well, I didn’t know that. But I’ve been askin’.” And she hurriedly went about her serving. I watched her as she moved from table to table, and I wondered what it would be like to lose everything you had worked for for 20 years. But I didn’t ask.

Later, as she brought our check, she made another comment about, ‘Next time you visit, I’ll try to have another quote from the Bible,’ or something like that, and she dropped our check on the table. As we left, her bible quote: “Ask and you shall receive” kept playing in my head. But I didn’t ask her what she thought she needed to receive.

I didn’t say enough to that tired waitress who served us chowder the other night, I don’t think. I missed an opportunity. I don’t think she was just another server in a diner. She was more like a woman at a well, waiting for a healing word from the Jesus who said, “Ask, and you shall receive.”

I slipped up, at dinner the other night. I missed an opportunity. I should have listened to Peter.

1 Pet. 3:15″… and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;”