things i write
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by Brian Niece
Something Beyond Nothing?
The God We Don’t Yet Know
most recent posts
Clearing Space
For about a month I've been clearing space: mentally, emotionally, and likely in some ways I'm still not aware of. For the seasons of Advent and Christmas I decided to unplug from a few things in order to make room for something new. I'm not sure if the new has yet...
The Outsider Is My Salvation: From the Archives
[callout]This post first appeared in May, 2016. It is good reminder to us now.[/callout] If the person of Jesus is my salvation, then where is Jesus found? In those who are "other" from us, from me. Liberty, freedom, and salvation are in the outsider. [featured-image...
The Arc of Fear
The arc of fear is a powerful motivator. But the arc of fear never finishes bending where it seems to lead, because under the immense pressure of such a significant force, it will always at some point break. [featured-image single_newwindow="false"] History and...
Remember: A Prayer on the Eve of Election Day
A brief prayer on the eve of the US election day, to remind us what is real. [featured-image single_newwindow="false"] Remember, this too will pass. Like all things, Like always. We've fashioned something much bigger of this: Holding up a funhouse mirror to our system...
God Left the Building
This is not a newsflash. Consider it a public service announcement and a reminder from about 2500 years ago. Before Jesus of Nazareth ever walked the earth, we were told the God he called Father was not contained in a building we may deem sacred. And if there was any...
Why the Good Old Days Never Were
[callout]This piece also appears on ALTARWORK.com.[/callout] Sometimes I catch myself thinking about my own good old days. Maybe you, too? I look back to a previous season in life and get all the feels. I romanticize what was and think, "If I only I could go back."...
Call Me a Fool
In our US American culture, we generally label someone highly educated as "wise." If so, then I'm one of the supposed wise, and my perceived wisdom is also broad. I hold two degrees and am working on my third. These three degrees span vastly different, yet uniquely...
The Power of Story in Preventing Suicide
His name was Billy. He was 15. I was 15, too. It was the first time I remember being this close to suicide. [featured-image single_newwindow="false"] Billy was a teen in our church youth group in Nashville. He seemed a happy-go-lucky sort of guy. Sure, we knew there...
Black Lives Matter, Too
I cannot help but notice the beautiful parallels between current social justice protests in US America and the ancient Hebrew story of Job. The two narratives have many similarities. Job is in darkness, suffering the silence -- or bad advice -- of his friends, the...
The Lie of Practicality
Can authentic faith be practical? Is the Way of Jesus a system of ideas that provide for positive lives of practicality? Or is the Way of Jesus rather a way of challenging and risk-taking practices to be lived out in community? Even practices that will cause us in the...
Offensive Grace
This week's episode of the Reimagining Podcast concerning reimagining grace has me ... well ... reimagining grace. Imagine that! Ha. Since I'm more of a Hebrew Scripture guy, I don't think grace is a purely New Testament thing. Sure, Jesus shows us what both divine...
The Lost Art of Dialogue
When on trial for his life, Socrates called himself a gadfly. He called the institutional political machine a slow, dim-witted horse. My guess is the politicians putting him on trial -- the very ones he likened to the horse -- were not very pleased. They ceased the...