How To Become More Solution Focused - Numbers 29-32

Numbers 32:16-19 (ESV)

Then they came near to him and said, “We will build sheepfolds here for our livestock, and cities for our little ones, but we will take up arms, ready to go before the people of Israel, until we have brought them to their place. And our little ones shall live in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our homes until each of the people of Israel has gained his inheritance. For we will not inherit with them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on this side of the Jordan to the east.”

The tribe of Reuben and Gad and one-half of Manasseh saw the land that the nation just conquered from the Midianites and thought it looked great for their livestock and their future homes.  Remember, they had been wandering almost 40 years by now.   God had promised the land of Canaan but these tribes saw this land, on the opposite side of the Jordan River, and thought it looked great.   Moses objected to this idea, vehemently.  He reminded them of the scene 40 years earlier where the people did not want to cross over into the promised land because the spies (their very fathers and grandfathers) had dissuaded the people from entering the land.  Moses reaction was based upon a cognitive anchor, rooted in past behavior of others.   The two and one-half tribes, in the above references, let Moses know they have full intent on fighting for the promise land as God had directed.  But they were wiling to step out in faith and leave their wives and little ones behind (In fortified and provided cities) and fight for the rest of the nation.  This will persuade Moses to let them go. But it needed to be talked about.  Moses, at first, was angry with them.  He had one vision for their plan and they had another.  It was not until the full disclosure of both mindsets were offered, that a solution was found.   The two and one-half tribes could have been better on how they presented their idea.  There is a strategy called Idea-Goal-Alignment, that might have worked here.  Had they aligned their goal (having the land on this side of the Jordon) with Moses’ goal (conquering the promise land), Moses’ might have reacted with less anger.  Once they show him that their idea did include that element, he was more than willing to accommodate.  Sometimes people only hear the other person’s idea and that does not align to their goal, and they react.   Idea-Goal-Alignment-Strategy is a way to make sure everyone knows that the idea and the goal all align.  We need to spend more time dong that work and have less time being opposed to the ideas of others.   When presenting an idea or hearing an idea, find a way to make sure all goals and the ideas are aligned.  That is being solution oriented.