Nicole Unice
8 min read ⭑
“I was as surprised as anyone to discover my love for the Bible when I was in college — for the stories, the poetry, the characters and the letters. As someone who wrestles through life, having a grounding place for the way I think, feel and believe has been my sustaining truth. I interpret my life and our lives together through those stories, poems and letters, and I want others to be able to do the same.”
Nicole Unice is passionate about changing lives — in the church and in the marketplace. As a pastor, author and host of the “How to Study the Bible” podcast, she helps people live in freedom, grow in healthy faith and authentically connect their spiritual and emotional lives. Perhaps more surprising (but just as impactful) is her work as chief operating officer of Pangea Technologies, a fintech startup seeking to create global economic equity through AI-powered software. In our interview today, Nicole is peeling back the curtain to reveal how she connects deeply with God, her struggle to be joyful and the unexpected power of a mid-day nap.
QUESTION #1: ACQUAINT
There’s much more to food than palate and preference. How does a go-to meal at your favorite hometown restaurant reveal the true you behind the web bio?
I grew up in a military family, which meant that “home” was simply wherever the army sent us. What I’ve come to appreciate about that upbringing was how food becomes the true feeling of home — and I’ve tried to bring that into my much-more-anchored life in Richmond, Virginia, where we’ve lived for the past 26 years.
Our new favorite go-to is to run or bike from our house in the historic Fan District in downtown Richmond, over the James River and into Westover Hills, and to our favorite brewery that serves amazing Mexican food. We bring our kids and friends. The adventurous ones join us for the bike ride or run, and everyone else grabs a table and meets us there. It’s the perfect way to capture everything we love about our city and our community: casual, made for the outdoors and a growing little city of culture and history.
Tim Foster; Unsplash
QUESTION #2: REVEAL
We’ve all got quirky proclivities and out-of-the-way interests. So what are yours? What so-called “nonspiritual” activity (or activities) do you love engaging in, which also help you find essential spiritual renewal?
I absolutely love a fire, a book and a journal. We have a lake place we love to go to — there’s a fire pit on the point of the land that’s surrounded almost 180 degrees by water. I love the process of building a fire and tending it until it’s blazing. During the day and in the cooler months, I could sit all day with a great novel or with my own journal. (I’ve been a journal writer since I was very young, and I find it’s the place where I can get to know my own soul best.) Almost always, God reveals something to me or in me that I was not aware of until I put pen to paper.
Then when the sun goes down and the stars come up, I can immerse myself in everything beautiful about the world: the crackle and warmth of the fire, the sound and shimmer of the lake, the light and mystery of the stars. This is how I connect most deeply with God — alone, in his world, listening for his voice.
QUESTION #3: CONFESS
Every superhero has a weakness. Every human, too. We’re just good at faking it. But who are we kidding? We’re broken and in this thing together. So what’s your kryptonite, and how do you hide it?
My big kryptonite is that I don’t have a naturally joyful personality. There’s so much of me that wishes I was the person who woke up on the right side of the bed and brought levity to situations, but I’m just not. It’s an intentional choice I have to make daily, and it’s a lot of work.
I think it comes down to this constant striving for what’s next — living in the future instead of being able to take it one day at a time, feeling all the things in a day and embracing them, and finding the joy that’s available even in the ordinary things. I’m working on it and will be working on it for the rest of my life!
QUESTION #4: FIRE UP
Tell us about your toil. How are you investing your professional time right now? What’s your current obsession? And why should it be ours?
I’ve lived a lot of different lives in my lifetime — or at least it feels that way. I started my career in fitness, and I was a therapist, a pastor, and now lead in a startup, so I’ve basically covered all the bases. I think all of that change in both my childhood and adulthood means I’ve always needed to find a center — a true north that I can return to again and again.
I was as surprised as anyone to discover my love for the Bible when I was in college — for the stories, the poetry, the characters and the letters. As someone who wrestles through life, having a grounding place for the way I think, feel and believe has been my sustaining truth. I interpret my life and our lives together through those stories, poems and letters, and I want others to be able to do the same.
All my books center around the idea that there’s freedom and wholeness available to us when we ground our lives and stories in God’s story. My latest book, “Not What I Signed Up For,” is an extension of my own life, centered around the question, “How can I find life again when life isn’t what I expected or wanted?” The book follows the biblical story of Joseph from the book of Genesis, which I find incredibly captivating, real and relevant for our lives today, especially if you’re in a “not what I signed up for” season.
QUESTION #5: BOOST
Cashiers, CEOs, contractors, or customer service reps, we all need grace flowing into us and back out into the world. How does the Holy Spirit invigorate your work? And how do you know it’s God when it happens?
One of the places where I’ve often sensed God is in the practice of journaling. When I come to a blank page and allow my thoughts to flow, I’m not just discovering or praying to God but also allowing God to help me discover myself. I’m having a really hard time expressing my emotions at the moment. The page allows me to process in a way that reveals what’s really going on, and somehow, in the midst of that writing — whether I’m angry or fearful or sad — God seems to meet me there on those pages.
QUESTION #6: inspire
Scripture and tradition beckon us into the rich and varied habits that open our hearts to the presence of God. So let us in. Which spiritual practice is working best for you right now?
One of my very favorite spiritual practices is the practice of a nap! Sometimes, a nap means I actually go to sleep. I learned, especially when my kids were young, that rest is a gift from God and not “lazy.”
I love a good “rest my eyes,” which is my way of pausing mid-day to reconnect with God in the midst of the busyness of whatever is going on. Most of the time, I ask God to bring me back into his joy, peace and alignment with whatever the rest of the day brings. It only takes about five to 15 minutes and makes a huge difference.
QUESTION #7: FOCUS
Looking backward, considering the full sweep of your unique faith journey and all you encountered along the way, what top three resources stand out to you? What changed the game and changed your heart? What radically altered your life? What changed your reality?
One of the things that I love so much about authors is that I consider them friends. There are friends I’ve met in the journey who have profoundly shaped my own faith journey — and I’ve never met any of them face to face.
The first two are Henri Nouwen and Brennan Manning. I first started reading their work in my early 20s and connected deeply with their struggles in faith and desire to really accept their status as beloved and cherished by God. I had never been able to put into words that deep longing in my heart to know I was accepted in that way, and my “friends” Henri and Brennan gave me permission to do so.
The second was hearing Beth Moore teach. I think I was at a neighborhood church, just had my second child, and here comes this southern woman on a big screen just passionately teaching from God’s Word with authority. I was absolutely captivated. Over the next few years, I had two teachers. One was my seminary education, but parallel to that, my teacher was Beth Moore. She taught me how to communicate with heart and depth. I’m the teacher I am today because of her “mentoring” — although, once again, I’ve never met her. That’s the power of words. It’s so amazing how deeply we can be known just by the way authors and teachers share their hearts.
We all have things we cling to to survive (or even thrive) in tough times — times like these! Name one resource you’re savoring and/or finding indispensable in this current season, and tell us what it’s doing for you.
I’ve spent most of my adult life as a “professional Christian,” which, I’ll admit, can make one pretty jaded toward lots of current tools and tricks for connecting with God. For me, I find myself circling back over and over to two things: the power of worship and the simplicity of a devotional. I love “Streams in the Desert” and have returned to it again and again. And there’s nothing like a strong Maverick City worship set to break me out of a funk and get me pointed in the right direction again.
QUESTION #8: dream
God is continually stirring new things in each of us. So give us the scoop! What’s beginning to stir in you but not yet fully awakened? What can we expect from you in the future?
It’s funny to have just written a book about going through a season of transition, and then — bam! I’m in another season of change. There are so many things changing in my life, and as much as I love the “springtime” of the soul when new things are being born, I’m actually in a season where it feels like most of what God is doing is uprooting and making space.
My oldest two kids are in college, and my last one has one foot out the door. I’m in a new season at work that’s quite challenging — which I love — but also means my relational circles have shrunk a bit. My husband and I are figuring out new friendships and new community as we move toward an empty nest.
It’s all a bit tangled and messy right now, but in the midst of it, there’s a deep sense of God’s continued hands in the plans, both for our lives and for those we love. I think the main dream of the season is to keep in step with the Spirit of God, to be able to move at his pace and co-create this new chapter of life. I’m on the edge of my seat to see what happens!
“For the times, they are a-changin’.”
Bob Dylan may have been talking about our the shifting political landscape of his day, but his words hold true for our personal lives as well. Life is constantly changing, which can be scary when it happens outside of our control.
Thankfully, we don’t have to fear change — because the One who created us and holds all things together has us continually in the palm of his hand. If you’re facing some unsettling changes in life, consider these truths today:
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17, NIV).
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8, NIV).
“God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you’” (Hebrews 13:5, NIV).
Nicole Unice is a pastor and leadership coach who facilitates environments of safety and vulnerability so that leaders and teams can courageously identify obstacles that keep them from reaching their maximum potential. Author of several books on spiritual formation, Nicole is a featured speaker on Right Now Media and hosts the How to Study the Bible podcast, which reached 188 countries last year. She lives with her husband, Dave, in the Fan District of Richmond, Virginia.
