Our Loss, Heaven’s Gain

August 11, 2010

Dear Family and Friends of Lawrence Schoenhals,

Heaven gained a new choir director on August 8 when my dad, Lawrence Schoenhals, entered Glory with baton in hand. He was ready to go and slipped from this life with the ease of a man who had lived faithfully as a servant of Christ and who looked forward to his eternal home.

The day before, around 2 pm, we received a call from the head nurse at the full-care section of Warm Beach Senior Community informing us that Dad was failing rather quickly. She suggested we might want to come. An hour later, we were on the road and by 5:45 we entered his room.

He was on oxygen and morphine and breathing roughly. We asked if a private room was available and providentially one had opened up earlier in the day. They moved Dad to B-2 where there was space for several chairs. The room and view outside were very pleasant and it all seemed perfect for our needs.

We called our children and by nightfall they were all there, except our daughter in Vermont. We prayed, read Scripture, and sang together, using the hymnbook and selecting music Dad had arranged. My sister called my cell phone from Portland and spoke her goodbyes into Dad’s ear.

By midnight, the room was empty except Dad, Sandy and me. During the night we took turns holding his hand and speaking to him. Though he never opened his eyes or said a word, we felt he could hear us and sense our presence. He squeezed my hand now and then. His breathing seemed quieter.

Morning came and our daughter Sara returned with her husband, Joe. The four of us and nurse Vivian stood by his bed watching and waiting. At 9:15 am he gently, quietly ceased breathing. It was so imperceptible we didn’t see it at first. Then Vivian touched an artery and said, “I think he’s gone.”

There was no struggle, no indication of any fear or resistance. He simply slid silently into eternity. His face was peaceful, his body still. It was a beautiful and precious moment I will remember for the rest of my earthly life.

It is hard to explain, but when his spirit departed we could sense an absence in the room. His body was there, but he was gone. We were left in our bodies to carry on until our time to join Dad in Heaven.

I kissed his forehead and we sat with him for a couple of hours, reminiscing with other family members who arrived to pay their final respects. We spoke of his life and influence and gave thanks for our heritage. Each of us, I believe, renewed our resolve to follow his example and live more godly lives.

 “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed every day. For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, because we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (II Cor. 4:16-18 RSV).

— Roger Schoenhals