Author | Lightnews

Rev. Val

@revsheseesfar.bsky.social

8.3K followers 10K following 1.7K posts

Pronouns: she/her/savage rebel. Pastor of a fully inclusive UMC Reconciling Ministries church in East TN. 4th or 5th generation (and cradle) Methodist. Straight CIS Ally and Dem. Watch those clobber verses. I tend to clobber back.

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Nov 15

Intro post: I'm a UMC LLP, pastoring a 140+ yo rural church (unanimously reconciling & fully inclusive) in an ultra-conservative East TN county adjacent to Knoxville. My flock is 60-70% LGBTQ. They opted to turn their educ. wing into a transitional housing shelter (Bruno Project). 1/4

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · 4d

#BeUMC #NoKings #StandTogether #HépíngZhànsì #goodtrouble
No Kings Protest in Maryville TN

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · 8d

Some things bear repeating. Get off the fence and take a stand.
#resistance #riseupchurch #holyresistance #endchristiannationalism #goodtrouble #EndICE #BeUMC 21st Century #Beatitudes #HépíngZhànsì
youtu.be/2lGebed45OM?...

Blessed Are the Blacklisted

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · 8d

Some of us grew up with the idea
that Jesus had to die to satisfy God’s anger.

That someone had to pay, to bleed.
That God couldn’t forgive without a transaction.

But what if that’s not who God is?
What if atonement isn’t about punishment,
but about healing?
#BeUMC
youtu.be/EOhQmkjJC7Q?...

Healing, Not Payment

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · 18d

If you’ve ever felt stuck in a valley—if you’ve ever wondered if new life was still possible—this message is for you.
Because resurrection isn’t just about the end.
It’s about standing up again.
#BeUMC #resurrection #newbeginnings
youtu.be/WJKPgLlRJkQ

Invitation, Not Transaction

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · 25d

If grace has ever felt like a reward you had to earn, today’s message is for you.
Jesus didn’t hand out grace like a prize.
He gave it like breath—
freely, fully, and first.
#BeUMC #Grace #worship #badlexicology #HépíngZhànshì

youtu.be/VppwTB5-IGs?...

Charis: Invitation, Not Transaction

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

Reposted by Rev. Val

Monica @softtail65.bsky.social · 27d

Have a Great Friday, Beautiful Souls! ✨️🥰✨️

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · 28d

A devotional to share across generations. Mothers and daughters walking side by side with the women of the Bible. 💜
Available now at books.by/manypathspress

It's a good way to begin to #smashthepatriarchy

#BeUMC #women #BibleStudy #Devotional #WomensVoices

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · 29d

Most of us were taught that hell is fire, forever.
But Scripture paints a more complicated picture.
Jesus didn’t threaten us with Gehenna—
he warned us not to create it.
And today, we’ll explore what hell really means,
and how love pulls us out of it.
#BeUMC
youtu.be/i4rZKEI7vvk?...

Hell: A Place or a State?

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 17

If faith depended on proof, it wouldn’t be faith.
We walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor 5:7).
Wenn Glaube Beweise bräuchte, wäre es kein Glaube.
Wir wandeln im Glauben, nicht im Schauen (2 Kor 5,7).

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 17

Do we really know what he said? Only by trust and faith. He bore peace—not fear, empire, or control. Basileia = love in action.
Wissen wir wirklich, was er sagte? Nur mit Vertrauen und Glauben. Basileia: Liebe in Aktion—Frieden, Gerechtigkeit, Jetzt.

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 17

They were always there. Sixty-one women across Scripture: prophets, apostles, widows, leaders, mothers, daughters. Their stories rise again in Sophia’s Daughters.
Not a footnote, but a voice. Not forgotten, but remembered.

#SophiasDaughters #BibleStudy #Devotional #Women
Books.by/manypathspress

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 15

✦ Message for the Beloved Outsiders ✦
For everyone who’s been told you don’t belong in God’s love—hear this: You are beloved, you are not alone, and you are never beyond God’s embrace. 🕊️💜
#BeUMC #LGBTQIA #immigrants #leastofthese #outcasts
youtu.be/z9bjoRxICSM?...

Message for the Beloved Outsiders

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 14

Today we’re talking about something Jesus couldn’t stop talking about:
the kingdom of God.
But what if that kingdom isn’t a faraway place?
What if it’s already here? Already breaking through—
right where you are?
#BeUMC

youtu.be/1fa_o0Wq1SA?...

Here and Now

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 13

At the heart of Sophia’s Daughters is a simple conviction: women in scripture were not side notes. They were leaders, visionaries, and witnesses to God’s unfolding story. Their voices matter — and so do ours.

#BeUMC #women

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 10

Same!

DonnaKCourtney @seacowindustries.bsky.social · Sep 10

Today…

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 10

Age verification? I made phone calls on a party line using a rotary phone.

John Allen @knowtea.bsky.social · Sep 10

Age verification? I saw Whitney Houston on her first national tour.

Colin Dickey @colindickey.com · Sep 10

Age verification? The first time I saw The Simpsons was on The Tracey Ullman Show.

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 10

Meekness (praus) in Scripture doesn’t mean being weak or passive. It’s power under control. It’s the way of Jesus—strength rooted in humility, self-restraint, and radical trust in God.
#BeUMC
youtu.be/Av2HUJNCrTo?...

Meekness Is Not Weakness

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

Reposted by Rev. Val

Tim Kobler @timkobler.bsky.social · Sep 5

Next time you think art doesn’t matter, consider how scared the fascists are of sidewalk chalk.

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 5

What has Xi Jinping done that is anywhere near as evil or vile as Putin or Kim Jung Un? Lift 8 million people out of poverty in one generation, end child labor and sweatshops, improve their infrastructure, make sure everyone has access to affordable healthcare? Stop buying propaganda!

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 3

Today, we continue our series “Giving Up Bad Lexicology for Life” by reclaiming the real meaning of peace. Not a fragile truce or the absence of conflict—but the wholeness that Christ offers us. Shalom. Eirene. Peace that soothes, restores, and makes us whole. #BeUMC

youtu.be/nDeMcWODtD4?...

Shalom & Eirene: The Wholeness of God

YouTube video by Rev. Valerie Ohle (Rev. Val)

youtu.be

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 1

My defiance level is rising. You've been warned.
#BeUMC

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 1

I wonder if it's someone trying to escape and didn't want to use a suitcase becauses that would be too obvious. :/

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 1

I'm certain I will. I find the "quiet" folks to be generally far more profound than the loud folks. ;)

Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Sep 1

OK, how do I find this feed that just might save my sanity???????

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Rev. Val @revsheseesfar.bsky.social · Aug 28

BlueSky is fast becoming another place where those of us who aren't already content creating celebrities get lost in the algorithm's natural suppression. A big disappointment since it started out to be so unlike X and the others.
#BeUMC

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