People are starting to get it, they really are.
When it comes to understanding the heart of a Honyak, the average reader of this blog is slowly forming a mental image of what I am trying to get across. But there still are those who are not quite sure what a Honyak really is; or even if they themselves have Honyak blood coursing through their veins? Well I have come up with a simple test to evaluate your Honyak potential. Answer this question: "When you hear the song 'Piano Man' by Billy Joel playing on your car radio, do you..." A - quickly turn the radio to another station, especially an easy listening station like 105.7 that plays all day Christmas music? B - keep it on the station , but you barely shed a tear when the phrase, "they are sharing a drink they call loneliness, but it's better than drinking alone", is hauntingly sung? C - turn the volume way up, roll down your windows, and belt out the chorus like it is the last song you will ever sing? If you answer A it is certain you have a long way to go in understanding Honyak living. If you answer B, you are a person caught between two worlds: yearning to explore more of your inner soul but not wanting to embarrass yourself doing it. If you answer C, you my friend, get it - - the Honyak well has been dug deep in your heart and the water of passion is ready to be drawn out. Why Billy Joel? Well, he lived in the Honyak world, and his lyrical poetry expresses what it means to be a bohemian redneck, a simple person just trying to live and not impress. His outlook on life is also realistic. He expresses this outlook well in the song "Keeping the Faith": 'Cause the good ole days weren't always good and tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems.' In other words, Honyaks have hope - - when life is hard, when you realize you are only human, when you know you will make mistakes, many of them, you still "Keep the Faith." I have come up with an acrostic for what I am trying to express: F - (Father focused). One of the main themes throughout the Honyak series has been the certain belief that God is good, he is for us. Faith always begins here: Knowing that God is watching over us with a heart of kindness, long-suffering and compassion. If you believe this, and you know the Father has all the Universe's power at his disposal to do anything he pleases, you can be sure, you will make it! A - (Absolute belief). When you are sure of God's goodness, you also are sure that his word is trustworthy as well. I once had a professor who said, "Faith is believing God's word and heart so much, that if he told you to eat dirt you know that you would be a fool not to." If he is good, than that means his commands are good. And if his commands are good, you know you will be blessed if you follow them. I - (Immediate obedience). Obedience is always a sign you believe, you just can't get around that. People who say they believe and don't ever live what they say they believe are called "hypocrites." Honyaks hate being called hypocrites - - if you love your Father you will do what he says. T - (Trust in trials). This is where the Honyak rubber of faith meets the road of life. It is easy to believe when the sun is shining; but when the storm clouds come rolling in, hypocrites run away. Did you ever realize, storm clouds are often purposed by God to chase the hypocrites away? I once read a story about a Romanian church during the days when the communist government was purging the Christians from the land. A Red soldier came into the church, pulled out a machine gun and said, "If you are not a Christian I am going to give you a chance to leave now; but for those of you who are willing to die for your belief in God, you will stay." After half the church emptied out, he closed and locked the door. He then threw down his machine gun and said, "Ahh, now I can worship freely with God's true children." Trials thin out the false and leave the true standing - - Honyaks hang in there. H - (Heavenly minded). Honyaks believe faith will pay off "big time." They have witnessed the brokenness of life first hand: They see their sister suffer through cancer, they know people lie and cheat you almost every day, they are the ones who have lost a dad to the grave years before he should have ever died. And they figure, "If this world is it, it ain't much?" But our good Father in heaven is "preparing a place for us, he wants to be with us." This is not only true, but it is the greatest most exciting promise ever given! Honyaks believe the weird stuff in the bible and are not embarrassed by it: they don't have a scholarly reputation to uphold so they readily accept the phenomenal. They long for the glorious Rapture, they want the Anti-Christ to be humiliated in the battle of Armageddon, they can't wait to put on their immortal new bodies. Honyaks revel in the ridiculousness of God's promises - - he said it, so they have no problem believing it. I must say, however, that there is one thing Billy Joel is completely wrong about; it is not true "only the good die young." Everyone dies, because everyone has sinned, and we all die old. What does that mean? The only reason you have lived a day longer than the day you were born is because of God and his mercy. Each day is a gift, each breath is another chance; and Honyaks are truly thankful for another blue sky and drop of rain. So go ahead, turn on your radio and sing like it is your last song, it just may be... and you know what, it's all God's grace!
1 Comment
Keith
12/6/2014 02:34:40 am
I must be a Honyak. Mom used to call me one, though not by your definition. I love the Piano Man and if I'm alone sing along with the radio up. I also believe the ridiculous: the world was made from nothing, Jesus was born of a virgin, He died on the cross and rose again, and I will live in eternity with Him. What joy it brings that this life is not the end. What sorrow it brings that this world is not the end for the unbelievers. Hurrah for Honyaks. Honyaks get the word out.
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