As Ecclesiastes says, There is “a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance.” This is a time to mourn. 38 people were killed when a helicopter was downed in Afghanistan on Saturday. Not 30. Not 22. 38 people. We don’t just count the Navy SEALs nor the U.S. servicemen. The loss was just as great for all involved.

It’s tempting to use this moment for political purposes. If you favor withdrawing troops from Afghanistan, this proves your point. If you oppose withdrawing troops from Afghanistan, this proves your point. If you support the President, this proves your point. If you oppose the President, this proves your point.

But this is a time to mourn, not to politick. I posted a comment on Facebook yesterday (in a group), and I now think that it was mistimed. There are points to be made, but this isn’t the moment. This is a time to mourn.

It’s only natural, I guess, that we in the U.S. should relate to this death more than the recent killings in Norway. Had these been servicemen from the base here in Abilene, I would probably feel it even more. But I can’t help but think that citizens of the kingdom of heaven should mourn all deaths, not just the passing of those geographically or ideologically close to us.

I would ask that, if you feel pain today, that you remember that pain when you hear of other deaths, of suicide bombs and drone strikes. Even if they aren’t Americans, even if they aren’t specially trained soldiers, we should feel the pain of each and every loss. May those days also be a time to mourn.