{"id":339,"date":"2025-09-16T22:29:54","date_gmt":"2025-09-16T22:29:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/?page_id=339"},"modified":"2025-10-28T23:57:40","modified_gmt":"2025-10-28T23:57:40","slug":"bubba-and-god","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/bubba-and-god\/","title":{"rendered":"Bubba and God"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"339\" class=\"elementor elementor-339\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-4af91ce elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-stretched elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"4af91ce\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;stretch_section&quot;:&quot;section-stretched&quot;,&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-no\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-14bcc74\" data-id=\"14bcc74\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-3d0c4ec elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default elementor-invisible\" data-id=\"3d0c4ec\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;animation&quot;:&quot;fadeInUp&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-099dc64\" data-id=\"099dc64\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1379384 elementor-hidden-mobile elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"1379384\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"20\" height=\"463\" src=\"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Group-1000008711.png\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-33\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Group-1000008711.png 20w, https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Group-1000008711-13x300.png 13w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 20px) 100vw, 20px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-cd99fba\" data-id=\"cd99fba\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5c5f990 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"5c5f990\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Bubba and God\n<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-66dd73e\" data-id=\"66dd73e\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a642993 elementor-hidden-mobile elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"a642993\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"29\" height=\"324\" src=\"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Larry-Patzer.png\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-27\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fb13e52 elementor-align-center elementor-widget__width-auto elementor-icon-list--layout-traditional elementor-list-item-link-full_width elementor-widget elementor-widget-icon-list\" data-id=\"fb13e52\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"icon-list.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"elementor-icon-list-items\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"elementor-icon-list-item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"#bubba-down\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-icon\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<i aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"icon icon-arrow-down\"><\/i>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-icon-list-text\">scroll down for more<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-a4af51a elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"a4af51a\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-56b93bc\" data-id=\"56b93bc\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-35bf4e0 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default elementor-invisible\" data-id=\"35bf4e0\" data-element_type=\"section\" id=\"bubba-down\" data-settings=\"{&quot;animation&quot;:&quot;zoomIn&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-ba8ebe9\" data-id=\"ba8ebe9\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d20a2a7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d20a2a7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Bubba and God\n\n<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-18befff elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"18befff\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">\u00a9 2017 Larry Patzer<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3bbfb92 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3bbfb92\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Bubba is one of those Southern \u201cGood \u2018ol Boys\u201d we from the north often hear about. He is also my neighbor and friend. He is the type of guy you enjoy sitting with on the patio and sharing a couple of beers. Bubba is also pretty narrow and rigid about his religious beliefs and carries on about them frequently. For example, he firmly believes that the universe was actually created in seven calendar days. He believes Jesus literally, physically rose from the dead, an actual event. He believes all miracles are real instead of metaphors telling a story. These are just a few of his beliefs. However, even though I do not believe the same things, we get along very well.<\/p><p>Today we are on the patio and he was waxing on again about his beliefs and how he just did not understand why more people did not believe like him. He had many stories to back up his beliefs. Every once in a while, I enjoyed telling him a story that \u201cjerked his chain\u201d and challenged his thinking. This was one of those days.<\/p><p>I said to him, \u201cBubba, today let me tell you a story.\u201d<\/p><p>\u201cOh my God, not again!\u201d he retorted. \u201cEvery time you tell a story, you get me really riled up and it takes me a week to unwind.\u201d\u00a0 He mugged a sarcastic smile and said, \u201cI suppose you are going to tell the story in spite of my delicate feelings. I guess I\u2019ll have to listen.\u201d<\/p><p>\u201cBubba, I think you\u2019ll agree with most of what I\u2019m about to tell,\u201d I said, trying to ease into my story.<\/p><p>\u201cLet\u2019s start with a bit from the Bible. In the beginning, God is. And, God is everything and therefore everywhere. You with me so far?\u201d<\/p><p>Bubba nodded for me to continue.<\/p><p>\u201cAnd,\u201d I said, \u201cGod is spirit and God is eternal, right?\u201d<\/p><p>Bubba\u2019s curiosity was perked up he was now leaning toward me across the table.<\/p><p>\u201cSo, let\u2019s be clear about this word \u2018eternal\u2019. Eternal means forever without beginning or end there\u2019s no yesterday or tomorrow. So, what else is known about God?\u201d I asked.<\/p><p>\u201cWell, He\u2019s creative, isn\u2019t He? He created the Earth and stars and everything.\u201d<\/p><p>\u201cGreat! Bubba do you disagree with any of this so far?\u201d<\/p><p>Bubba looked a bit confused as he said, \u201cYeah, I\u2019m with you so far, I just don\u2019t know where you\u2019re going.\u201d<\/p><p>\u201cOK,\u201d I said. \u201cLet\u2019s recap slowly. In the beginning,<\/p><ul><li>God is, He exists<\/li><li>God is spirit<\/li><li>God is everywhere and everything<\/li><li>God is eternal, meaning forever<\/li><li>God is creative.<\/li><\/ul><p>This should be right in line with your beliefs, right?\u201d<\/p><p>Bubba nodded vigorously.<\/p><p>\u201cBubba, do you realize what you\u2019ve just said? You and the universe and everything here\u00a0<em>cannot<\/em>\u00a0<em>exist<\/em>.\u201d<\/p><p>\u201cWhat!\u201d Bubba yelled. \u201cWhat are you on about? If I thump you on your thick head with this beer bottle, it will certainly exist and be mighty real!\u201d<\/p><p>\u201cBubba,\u201d I continued gently, \u201cYou just said that the only thing that can exist is\u00a0<em>God<\/em>\u00a0as\u00a0<em>spirit<\/em>\u00a0<em>forever<\/em>. Only spirit, Bubba. Nothing physical can exist it\u2019s all spirit forever. If there is something that is, it has to be spirit. You and the universe are physical. <em>You\u2019ve just defined yourself out of existence!<\/em>\u201d<\/p><p>Bubba just sat there for almost a minute with a deer in the headlights look.<\/p><p>\u201cSo, Bubba, my story ends with a question. Are you God? Is your physical self a figment of God\u2019s imagination? What do you think?\u201d<\/p><p>Bubba shook his head and after a very long pause mumbled, \u201cAs usual, you\u2019ve hurt my head again.\u201d After another long pause and much head shaking, he said, \u201cAh the hell with it let\u2019s get another beer.\u201d<\/p><p>Larry Patzer<br \/>May 2017<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bubba and God scroll down for more Bubba and God \u00a9 2017 Larry Patzer Bubba is one of those Southern \u201cGood \u2018ol Boys\u201d we from the north often hear about. He is also my neighbor and friend. He is the type of guy you enjoy sitting with on the patio and sharing a couple of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-339","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=339"}],"version-history":[{"count":34,"href":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/339\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1212,"href":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/339\/revisions\/1212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lpatzar.client-demo-websites.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}