However, Paul was unimpressed with the ‘powers’ and ‘principalities’ that were at work. The ancient scriptures had already told of a time when men found common language to coordinate one another and common building blocks to assemble towers that would reach to the heavens. These towers did not release life into the earth nor liberate people to be more human. Instead they turned artisans into technicians and communities into factories. The Hebrew prophets had repeatedly warned that humanity had the ability to focus on things that would only consume them. Not all of the games we play and the goals we can reach are necessarily life giving. Paul himself had been witness to what amazing exploits were possible when people coordinated their efforts as one. And he knew what it felt like to give himself passionately to dreams that were built on fantasies and fallacies.

So, although the new systems brought massive social breakthroughs and the technology of the time was cutting edge, Paul knew that beneath all the excitement, something even more revolutionary was seething. Behind the social fabric of Roman society and underneath the class structure of a multinational world, he realised that the Creator was inviting and assembling and creating an entirely new breed of human being. All across the Roman empire, Paul was discovering individuals who had already been chosen to be part of this new creation. Throughout every city and neighbourhood he simply announced the news of this long promised reality having begun in Jesus. And out of the woodwork, a movement of people began emerging. These were people from all walks of life and all stratas of society. Some were Roman officials. Other were Jewish businessmen. Many were migrants from other countries trying to survive within the Roman economy. And now they were flocking together like backpackers from a common hometown. The good news of what ‘Father’ had done with Jesus struck a chord with a strange selection of people and they began assembling together like paratroopers regrouping behind enemy lines. The old fear tactics and the latest fads suddenly looked like dead and obsolete idols. They turned away from the usual hooks – money, sex and power – like they were going out of fashion. And instead they rallied together like outposts of an advancing Kingdom – identified by their King, practicing the ways of their King, advancing the image of their King.

For Paul, this was a mystery. Never before had anyone expected Greek philosophers to join with Barbarian warlocks and Roman centurions to celebrate the blood and body of a rural Jewish carpenter. No one could have ever predicted how an obscure, failed, minor political party leader would model for the entire world the kind of leadership that would truly bring life to companies and communities. No other rabbi ever imagined that it would be through Israel’s weaknesses that God’s character would finally be revealed to the world and that through Abraham’s insignificant little family, truth would be embodied and shine like a beacon to all the nations of the earth.

And now, after a lifetime of seeing this mystery at work everywhere he went, Paul finds himself chained up in a Roman prison. After all, not everyone is thrilled by the advance of a new government into the land. Not only is change threatening to the average person to grapple with. It is also damning for those who have vested interests in the old way of doing things. And Paul has faced both. He has had to deal with people who have gathered around the news he has brought to town – and tried to use it as a way to make money. He has also had to deal with people who are responsible for exerting Roman authority against any and all other forms of government. But now, it seems that these groups will win – and Paul knows it.

He will soon be beheaded.
The people in the community who betrayed him have succeeded in their jealous plot. The administrators of Roman authority have judged him to be a threat to the stability of the Roman empire. And like His master, Paul will end his life’s work looking like a complete failure. Not only has he been outrun by the system. His own friends have now abandoned him. Those that received the good news from him with such joy in Asia now will not even admit that they know him. Colleagues who used to work with him cannot afford to be associated with him.

But this is not what is concerning him.
He shows no sign of regret, disappointment or defeat. In fact, it is precisely in this place of weakness and vulnerability that he is convinced that His gospel wins. Paul writes from his prison cell with sober frailty – as a now elderly man bracing himself for the winter in a Roman jail. But his writing exudes a stunning confidence and a shameless invitation.

His only concern is that Timothy will miss the whole point of this adventure that they have shared. Together, they have planted churches, mentored governors, confronted injustice, reinvigorated Jewish tradition with fresh fulfilment, translated truth from Hebrew narrative into Greek concepts and proclaimed it in the metaphors of the day. They have travelled thousands of kilometres together and spent decades of close friendship and partnership.

But if Timothy thinks that this is about being ‘successful’, he will be terribly embarrassed by this pathetic ending. If Timothy thinks this is about looking good, getting stuff done or changing the world, he will be deeply discouraged by this setback.

Paul will have none of this.
This is about one thing – and one thing only: The Good News of the Creator’s Kingdom. It has definitively arrived in the resurrection of Jesus, it is advancing through those who will trust His spirit amongst us and it will fill the entire earth with resurrection life not too far hence.

His last words to Timothy are not shy, scared or sad. They are powerful, clear and compelling. Like only a dying man can do, he calls Timothy back to the things that really matter. And after all his years in the system, outside of the system, confronting the system, Paul is not uncertain about what is ahead of Timothy. But he is even more confident about what is inside of Timothy.

We, today, need this kind of clarity.
We live in an era when technological advance and sociological change is occurring at an unprecedented rate. The rich heritage of historical christianity is being passed from the age-old institutions of Western religion to fragile grass roots movements of new tribes and bands sporting radically different logos, labels and languages. The dreams of the modern age and the disillusionments of the postmodern weigh our industries down while a new generation rises up seeking new convictions to give purpose to our impressive digital capabilities.

Our community in particular is in a phase where there is much activity advancing on the fringes. New projects, house churches, families and businesses are all demanding our time and our energy. We have the privilege of being busy with opportunities to proclaim truth, father and mentor a new generation, enjoy authentic relationships and to engage and shape industries and companies. We are pushing out new frontiers and taking on larger responsibilities.

In amongst all of this Paul becomes a signpost on the road to call us back to our core. It is not enough for us to simply do more and more things. Rather, we must do what we have been given to do with more and more meaning. We must draw from the deep convictions of our identity and purpose and infuse all of our work with it.
This season is an opportunity for us to clarify what it is that we must pass on to the next generation. It is a time to drill down and cut away at the peripheral baggage of our religion and to recover a death conquering understanding of the world.
This is an invitation to sit down together with Timothy, to join with others around this precious letter from Paul. It is an excuse to connect with one another around things that really matter. Here is discussion material, deep questions and provocative statement – fuel for thoughtful, heartfelt conversation.

Most of all, whenever we encounter death and people who are dying – whether that be Jesus on a cross, or Paul on death row – it is a call to relook at God, to challenge our view of success and to learn to worship all over again.

Dying men don’t shout.
                        They whisper.
And those who care, gather close around the bedside and listen.

Come closer
and join me in the listening.

It is a brief opportunity to touch base, get up-to-date, share insights and inspiration, refocus our plans and recalibrate our language.

For 2011, our theme is Engagement.
Over the past 10 years, we have hunkered down through the legal uncertainties at Arrow, wrestled through the reformation of ACCF, tightened our belts through the GFC and enjoyed a delightful baby boom in Expedition.

Now, we are emerging from our basement cave. We are reengaging one another as friends on a shared journey. We are reengaging the local neighbourhoods in which we live. We are reengaging the scriptures with prayer. We are reengaging our City’s culture with ministries, businesses and services.

This forward surge is daring us all out from our comfort zones. It is pushing our faces up against the hard edge where real cash, real sinfulness, real people meet real hope, real Christians, real community. It is here that faith is applied – with our children, our balance sheets and our hard work.

But none of this is ‘for’ a church. Each of us are engaging the chaos of our world as The Church. Every business transaction, every conversation, every nappy – is the point of engagement where love comes into contact with darkness, dirt and dysfunction.

Most of the time, this kind of engagement is fiddly, mundane, unnoticed and unimpressive. It will usually take years – sometimes generations – before people recognise, reward and renumerate you for your efforts. But we don’t do this for a reward that comes from other people.

We do this because this is who we are.

We are not servants or workers, hired hands waiting to be employed. We are representatives of our King. We are sons and daughters – whose Father created this earth as His magnificent palace. And if we are sons, then we are heirs – land owners and earth keepers and co-heirs together with one another and with Christ.

So, for this new financial year, this is not a time to pull back. This is no time to be shy, sly or spy. This is a time to engage the grit and the grime with faith, hope and love.

T.

1. An EARTHy understanding of God – His goodness, greatness, grace and glory – for everyone. It is our acceptance of, belief / trust in, celebration of, submission to this, that defines our identity.
2. A ‘friends on a spiritual Journey’ approach to discipleship, pastoral ministry – for ‘discipling’ / ‘mentoring’ someone. It is our commitment to, practice of, spaces for this that defines our lifestyle – our homes, friendships, next generation.
3. An IBGF method of Community Development – for ‘growing’ somewhere. It is our posture of, stability in, attentiveness and responsiveness to this that defines our structures, culture, creativity, diversity.
4. A VMSP foundation for Ministry / Project Leadership – for ‘building’ anything. It is our confidence in, clarity of, unity around, integrity with this that defines our reliability, effectiveness, efficiency, usefulness, impact, influence.

The only question that is left to us is whether or not we are listening. Are we listening – or are we simply too busy? Do we want to hear his voice – or have we given ourselves to chase after other gods? Have we looked passed or outright rejected his messengers – because they don’t measure up to our superficial expectations? Will we respond to what we hear – or are we so entrenched, so dependent, so enslaved, so comfortable, so conformed that we are unable, unwilling to move?

What I hear God saying is that He loves both our species and our planet with deep affection and abundant promise.
I hear Him commanding us not to fear the powers of the nations surrounding us, not to fixate on the benchmarks set by the culture for us, not to flirt with the addictions offered by the market to us. Instead, he commands us to die to the world and to abide in him with trust.
I hear him calling us with hope and vision. I hear him calling us to create and to collaborate: professions, families, communities, cities.

And having seen Jesus, I know what this calling means.
It means a courageous life of confident compassion.
It means that the comfortable, controlled, competitive middle-class is at high risk of being bypassed. It means that the lucky ones are those who are poor enough, hungry enough, desperate enough – because they at least, are ready to see, receive, enter a different system. It means that the guardians and managers of the existing system are in a dangerously blind and beleaguered place.
It means that the most beautiful is waiting to be buried – in order to be born. It means that all things are possible – to them who trust letting go. It means that there are things that we are invited into that are beyond our control and our comprehension.

Looking around us, I see glimpses of this God doing what he did in Jesus, here. I see selfless love growing and planting in the middle of a competitive, global city. I see men and women faithfully creating safe spaces for others to grow – forming spiritual families, biological families, work families. I see an increasing diversity of gifts and expressions and teams and families serving with one another like the limbs and organs of a body – each unit autonomous and uncontrolled, yet submitted to one another with respect and trust. And on the street level, I see so many, many saints doing such inspired work of the ministry: a healthy, creative city neighbourhood working together, international students producing an online magazine, feeding of the sick, fundraising catering teams, musicians, multimedia artists, actors and dancers, disadvantaged children feeding and guidance, children’s bible teaching, marriage and parenting mentoring, socially-conscious event management, young professionals, new businesses and responsible companies.

It is too easy to miss the magic in all of this. When you are surrounded by mystery it can too easily become mundane. But there is something unmistakeable at work in the midst of us. The ancient hebrews, having known the mundaneness of building pyramids, recognised the mystery at work when Bezaliel commenced work on the tabernacle. They described it as the Spirit falling upon him. Isaiah predicted it of those who would rebuild the ancient ruins and proclaim salvation – those anointed by the Spirit of the Lord. The Apostle Paul recognised it upon our Master Jesus, leading him all the way to the cross, through death itself, bursting into a new creation. The Roman pagans saw it upon the followers of Jesus and called them ‘Christians’, anointed ones. And I see it here, at work in Melbourne. Not everywhere, not all the time – but like a deep subterranean current that bursts out in gushes and spurts, glimpses and comments, gifts and talents, ideas and visions, difficult conversations and sweet, shared meals, long hard hours and glorious, rapturous moments.

Yes, God is still speaking to and in our noisy civilisation. We are sure of that. Tonight, we celebrate that.
And we are gathered here because we are listening. We want to hear more of His voice. We are willing to hear it through the most unlikely of messengers. We have chosen and tonight, we choose afresh, in advance, to respond to what we hear with hope and courage.

The world is charged with the grandeur of God.
It will flame out, like shining from shook foil;
It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil
Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod?
Generations have trod, have trod, have trod;
And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil;
And wears man’s smudge and shares man’s smell:
the soil
Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod.

And for all this, nature is never spent;
There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;
And though the last lights off the black West went
Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs -
Because the Holy Ghost over the bent
World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.
— Gerard Manly Hopkins

We are currently comprised of four culturally and geographically diverse clans. Each clan

East-side families (Emily & Chris), West-end young couples (Nicholas & Suelee), Malaysian Young Adults (Krystal), CBD international students (Ellie & Karen).

We believe that we have been gifted with a
Pivotal time in history:
Digital age.
Postmodern thought.
Rise of Asia.
Church Reformation.

Strategic city in australasia: Melbourne
Peaceful stability
Educational destination
Events capital
Multicultural depth
Natural beauty
Spiritual heritage

Ideal location in Melbourne: Arrow on Swanston
Central
University precinct
Developing neighbourhood
City Migration
Hospitality industry position

Powerful Position in society: 2nd Generation Professionals
Professionals
Asian & Australian
Godly parents, christian heritage
Young families. (New generation)

Breakthrough Understanding of Gospel: Truly Good News
Non-institutional, Non-transactional, Non-segmenting
Earth & Humanity affirming
Uniting, All encompassing, All embracing
Personally challenging, revealing, inviting

We seek to

1. Refresh the way people think about God, life, the church, our work from an ‘EARTH’ Biblical worldview. earth, resurrection, trinitarian, holistic.
2. Raise healthy people, families, neighbourhoods, businesses in the light of Jesus’ resurrection.
3. Engage people in embrace and empowerment in cooperation with the Spirit’s work in our city.
4. Establish signs of God’s government in every place we are planted throughout the earth.

To support these grand purposes, we are investing into 4 EARS
that we seek to establish in Melbourne
firstly as a support to Jesus’ church in Melbourne and
secondly as a headquarters for mission to other neighbourhoods:

Each of these EARS are designed to help amplify our ability to hear what we are saying to one another (EEE), what we are saying to our neighbourhood (AAA), what God is saying to our world (RRR), what wisdom is saying to us (SSS)

1. EEE Clans: Engaging (hope & vision), Embracing (love & gratitude), Empowering (trust & respect)
2. AAA Celebrations: authentic (expression of who we are), accessible (expression of how we live), accurate (expression of what we believe)
3. RRR Projects: responsive (local promise and purpose), responsible (financial transparency and independence), residential (bottom up, grass root leadership)
4. SSS Courses / Ministries: biblical (story), practical (skills), relational (support) anchored in the biblical story, immediately applicable in everyday life, personally supported by others on the same journey

I want to provide leadership to / raise up our generation to engage the world with worship, values, vision, mission. I want to help them get past the bottom-line power of the CCCC’s, the authority of the CCCCC’s, the needs of the AAA’s to be able to make top-line choices of Life*, according to the PCRSF, in the power of GGGG.

I want the credibility to assert the authority of love over and above the fear-based wisdom of our world – whether that be cultural, medical, business, institutional wisdom.

I want to see diverse peoples working together in ways that release synergies that would never be seen alone. I want to change the way that church works – and the way that churches work in isolation. I want to see expanding networks of synergies sweeping people up in amazing initiatives of grace and courage. I want to change the church. I want to see a new church emerge. I want to see the strength and heritage of the old church passed on to a new generation without so much of the baggage that the old church is known for.

Why am I doing this?
I want to see a successful baton change to the next age of the church.
I want to change the way people see God.
I want to inspire a whole new set of choices, a new authority for choice and decision making, a new way of making choices and living life.
(Control vs. trust – not assumption; Fear vs. love)
I want to establish little signposts, glimpses of what can happen when people trust. I want to plant seeds and signposts that get people thinking differently, that create a different momentum, that showcase a different Kingdom. And even if these little ventures get swallowed up in the flood of greed and fear, I want to know that my life gave people a sneak peek into another world – that we were made for, that is being made for us, that we will one day awake into.

I want to pass onto students/others/a new generation:

1. Identity of a professional missionary.
2. Vision of a different world: community.
3. Skills for an inspired life.
4. Authority over the wisdom of the world. (Ritual)

I want to reform, build, establish a different kind of church.
I want to pioneer models, incubate examples, support innovators of Kingdom grace.
I want to shape a new, biblical worldview for a new generation.

This is me.
Proclaiming the love and faithfulness of God.
Teaching others to live.
Reforming the Church as we knew it.
Planting signs of a different world.

What is most wondrous of them all?
The reason we are here this morning is because we don’t deserve any of this.

Life is so profoundly unfair.
Why should we enjoy cars, computers, democracy?
Better men than us have slaved away under oppressive regimes, primitive systems, stone walled thinking.
Why should we have all of these privileges?

This is not merely the way that everything is.
It wouldn’t be this way if someone didn’t establish it first.

Jesus’ cross established the forward trajectory of the world.

He lived blamelessly -
         Yet, He was judged unfairly. Our systems broke down.
                He died cursed. Our superstitions failed.
                He was buried abandoned. Our best ideals vanished.

He was the monstrous sacrifice to end the human insistence for sacrifices.
He was the scapegoat who exposed the depth of our human incompetence.
He was the spanner in the works, the bug in the system, jamming the empire that demanded our allegiance so that it could fix the world.

After his life – at his death, the world imploded.
What do you do when all your demands are met – and still you are unfulfilled?
What do you do when finally, you catch your opponent and you nail him down for good?
What do you do when you suddenly see everything you trusted turn against what you believe in?

If the story had stopped there, the story of Abram’s family would have fallen at that point, into a hopeless heap. They had exposed themselves as utterly pathetic scoundrels. They had bankrupted their rights and lost all credibility before God. They had damaged their religious system beyond repair. How could it pretend to represent the righteousness of God? How could they even ask God to bless them after 40 generations of relentless defiance – culminating in this? How could they hold their head up after their disgraceful perversion of justice?

This was the absolute train wreck of a civilisation’s wisdom. It was the spectacular failure of a proud religion. Here, no money, no exploits, no propaganda could cover a hole this black. Finally, Satan’s deception could be rigorously exposed and authoritatively uncovered. The law could make no one righteous. No one – no matter how much control they appeared to have – can steer themselves up the mountain of the Lord. ….

But this was no ordinary civilisation. It had been designed for this. It was made to be peeled back, torn apart, turned inside-out. The law code, the ceremonial systems, the ancient stories – all of these were designed to be driven into the brick wall such that on impact, they crumple down into an utterly dysfunctional write-off. Every…

The cross changes:

My view of God. What kind of God does this kind of thing? What is your power? Forgiveness! He has an inexhaustible ability to forgive – until we have utterly exhausted every excuse, every lie, every pretense and absolutely exposed the truth of what we actually are.

My stance in myself. I have nothing to hide. I need no excuses. I am already justified. Failure is success.
I am unfairly blessed. I am gloriously lucky. I am wonderfully created, shamefully guilty, miraculously supported, mysteriously invited.

My expectations of others. I’m not surprised at their sins. I’m in awe of their beauty. Grateful for their goodness.

My hopes for our world. If God is still forgiving, even despite ourselves, what could spring up in our lifetime?

After seeing what happened to him, how could anyone trust the system?

We are an eschatological people. That means that we live with a sense of the future breaking in onto the present. The eschaton has already arrived – but its not equally distributed.
And not just in the form of iphones or a unified Germany or polio eradication – but the future arrived in the physical resurrection of Jesus from Nazareth.

Because of this seed event, we think differently about everything now. Nothing is impossible. Death can and will be conquered. Religious prejudice has been broken. The future has begun and all of us are invited into it!

That means that we are constantly seeking out the front edge of possibility. We do this with compassion but not compromise. Confidence, clarity.

Expedition is a community of people who are learning to be fully human.
We are helping one another to keep our humanity in defiance of the a dehumanising system that preys on our anxieties, appetites and ambitions.
We are seeking to trust and respect one another despite our weaknesses and differences.
We are seeking to advance and respond to the world around of us with vision and courage.

Core Values:

What do we do with Core Values?
We label them accurately. We do not want to be caught up arguing about words. After all, its not the words that matter the most – it is the precious cargo that they point towards. They are merely the suitcases that hold meanings within. However, we must work hard at ensuring that we are using the same labels for the important suitcases so that we can protect the things that we value the most.

We think about them frequently. There are many things to think about on any given day. The urgent, the global, the painful, the exciting – these all lift and sway and burden and shape us in different ways. The act of thinking on something forms it within us. Like a bull chewing on grass, we allow a large thought to be broken down within us until it actually forms us.

We govern by them consistently. It is easy to talk about good things when everything is good. The place where goodness is most powerful is when eveyrthing around it is not. Values glimmer like diamonds when they are celebrated in sparkling light. But they function best when they are pushed against the hard steel edge and they prevail. Awe is a choice. Reflection is a discipline. Respect is a posture. Ownership is a position. They stand in all circumstances, are powerful in any situation, are necessary with all personalities and are possible over all problems. We insist on these in ourselves and we help one another by calling each other up to these.

We define ourselves by them globally. Not everyone chooses to live life this way. Most spend most of their life working out how they want to spend their life. Others struggle to find others to join them in their choice of life values. Many get caught up in religious and social groups that place limits and legislation upon who and how these realities can be accessed. We however, have the unique opportunity to live together, work together and build together a distinctive culture that will transcend denominational categories and shape families, businesses and movements all around the world.

1. Awe. A childlike appreciation of the wonder of life.
Realising that something greater is going on here.

We make an effort to be present to the wonder and the mystery that is at the heart of each person and each person’s experience. We do this with an acknowledgement of the mundane realities that repetitively bore us and the manipulative personalities that seek to take advantage of us. Nonetheless, we insist on the possibility and the potential of a greater good within each human being that, given the right conditions, will, with time be worth the risk.

Ways to keep yourself ‘fresh’.
A. Spend time obsessing over things that you authentically feel are ‘worth’ your worship.
B. Practice being present to the mysteries that fill your world with wonder.
C. Set aside spaces and places in your day where you deliberately stop filling your thoughts with things that are not ‘worth’ your worship. (Even though you may have pragmatic reasons why you ‘should’)
D. Engage your ‘right brain’ creativity with drawing, singing, poetry, storytelling.
E. Step back far enough to be able to see the ‘top line’.

2. Reflection. The humble discipline of authentic personal growth.
Knowing that something deeper is moving in me.

It is our regular deliberate habit to call one another into the intentional cycle of action and reflection. This is the engine of our personal growth and the test of our inner health. We, after all, are in a city where no one will nag us about the things that form us. At best, our exams will get graded or our inspectors will fine us. We can dodge questions from overseas, we can make up stories for our friends. But if we are to truly grow, we must make time to be true to ourselves – and to act upon what we see. Each ‘reality experience’ – every temper tantrum, awestruck moment, panic attack, bitter disappointment, bored disconnect, delighted – no matter how unpleasant or incomprehensible, opens up a new discovery. We do not believe that such experiences should be avoided, endured, or hidden. Rather, they should be savoured, shared and celebrated with trusted friends as the best parts of the journey!

Questions to ask in your reflection.
A. How’s Life? What character/story/role best describes you at the moment? What colour/shape/size are you at the moment? On a scale of 1-10 how would you rate yourself at the moment? Why?

B. What’s been happening? What events have been significant in shaping how you are today? What stories have you got from the past few weeks? Which people have made an impression on you recently? What movies, songs, podcasts, books, pictures, websites, conversations have been catching your eye? When do you last remember feeling very angry, sad, disappointed, ashamed – or very happy, excited, proud, satisfied?

C. What does that mean to you – and why? Why is that so important to you? How did you reach that conclusion? Who taught you to think this way? Where did you get that idea from? What experience (from your past) does this remind you of? How does this help/hinder your dreams and plans? How has your upbringing influenced the way you are responding to this?

D. What’s your next step? Can you imagine a different alternative? How might this look from a different point of view? What would happen if you chose a different path? If money weren’t an issue, what would you do? If you didn’t have to worry about pleasing your parents what would you do differently? If you could ask God for 1 thing, what would it be?

3. Respect. A gracious trust in another’s value despite their price.
Trusting that something important is happening in you.

Every human wants to be respected. Every human needs to be respected. Whether someone respects you – or even respect themselves – is their own choice. But regardless of whether or not they know it, they, as humans, are beings of infinite potential and eternal worth. The consequences of ignoring this truth is devastating. Humans who are devalued by others, devalue themselves and then devalue others. Although some may find a devalued human useful in some mechanical way, the loss of their potential creativity and the flow-down effect on others makes it an unacceptable cost to society. We do not consider there to be any valid justification for devaluing a human being – whether by religious category, intellectual capacity, financial worth, personality type or social standing. Far from simply developing a passive tolerance for other’s differences, we seek to cultivate an active appreciation for the deeper promise that every human carries and yearns for.

Practices to cultivate respect for others (and hence, respect for oneself):
A. The practice of honour. Like someone panning for gold, give weight to the things that deserve it. 101% Rule: find the 1% that is honourable and give it 100% of your attention.
B. The practice of contrary thinking: arguing your case from the other point of view.
C. The practice of self management: identifying and dealing with your own bottom line issues separately.
D. The practice of securing common ground:

4. Ownership. Responsible submission to a worthwhile vision.
Understanding that something good has been entrusted to us.

When it comes to moving something forward, we use the ‘we’ language. When it comes to defending something sliding backward, we use the ‘I’ language as much as possible. This is because we understand that if anything is going to improve, we all need to work together. And because we know that nothing gets done unless someone takes the blame. This willingness to take the blame is rooted in the deep security that we are most secure when we are most willing to take the blame. We are most ‘right’ when we are willing to believe for the right even when everything is going ‘wrong’.

The [Hard] Work of Clarifying Ownership
A. Stewardship: Securing and lowering our team’s bottom line.
B. Leadership: Clarifying and raising our team’s top line.
C. Conflict management: Identifying and acknowledging different people’s top and bottom lines. Tension is a normal and a healthy part of balanced teams.