There are four basic steps to group decision-making and or conflict resolution.

1. Prayer
2. Consult any Scripture on the topic
3. Apply a tool like 'ORID'
4. Ask yourself: “What would Jesus do?” 

So the group has hit a fork in the road and you want to move past it. What do you do?

Firstly get yourself right with God and seek guidance in prayer.

The second task is to find out if any direct parts of scripture relate to this topic or decision. If there are then it is important to review them. Use a discovery bible study method like ‘SOS’ to get the most out of scripture with the group. Break up in smaller groups if you have to.  Does this offer a simple path or procedure? If so then follow it.  If not then you can then use another tool to keep moving forward.

You can use a tool like "ORID" to help you keep moving forward without arguments or fights. ORID is a well-known tool that helps to map the way forward through any discussion without degrading into an argument.  ORID is just an acronym for the four parts any topic can be split into:  The plain facts, how people feel about it, the root problem/issue and what to do about it.  The fancy titles for each of these pieces are “Objective”, “Reflective”, “Interpretive” and “Decisional”. ORID for short.  We do this naturally without thinking about it every day, but when things hit close to home or seem too big to think about it we can get ourselves spinning our wheels or stuck in a repeating loop unable to move past something.  By acknowledging the four key parts of any discussion we commit to cover all the bases one at a time and not get stuck on any one of them.  Once a part of the discussion has been covered and moved on to another it is never revisited.  This stops the “He said, She Said, He did, She did, but I never” type argie-bargie sinkholes that drown or derail logic, reason and love.

ORID has four simple parts.  The facilitator/leader informs the group what the basic format of the discussions will be and helps the group talk through each part in turn.  When an ORID part seems exhausted or people are just rehashing something over and over then the facilitator moves them quickly on to the next part.  If it is going to be a difficult or painful thing to work through, they may establish some basic rules of play before ORID is started or when a particular part is started.  Not all parts may be required for all discussions.  Use common sense to apply the correct ones, but they are always done in this order.  To be effective EVERYONE should participate in each part.  The four parts/sections of an ordered and useful discussion are:

Part 1 - O:      This stands for objective – Start by just sticking to the facts about the situation. Find out what the group actually knows about it (or think they know about what happened). Stay away from guesses, rumours, feelings, etc... Fill in any known blanks or correct any known errors for the group.

Part 2 - R:      This stands for reflective – Find out how people felt about the topic being evaluated. What they liked and disliked. It may be time to set some basic behavioural rules or standards and some confidentiality rules. This can act as a therapeutic “Debrief” for some, provided tempers are kept in check.  Everyone should be free to discuss how they feel but no one is afforded any higher rank than another.  There are no justifications for the way they feel.  There are no attacks or rebuttals.  People feel how people feel. 

Part 3 - I:        This stands for interpretive – This is where you explore what were the real issues or challenges. Ask the group what they think is the root of the problem or the foundation of the principle.  Try and see past any hurt or immediate effects.  Look deeper.

Part 4 - D:      This stands for decisional – This is where you work out what is your group's decision or response. Some of the types of questions this option can answer are:

• What are the main issues of concern to everyone and how might they be dealt with or improved?
• How might a strategy/task be improved?
• How can we stop this from happening again?
• What can we do to move forward after an event like this? Etc.…

Lastly always ask the group: “What would Jesus do in this case?” (Corny I know but not as easy as it may seem actually, try to truly nut this out properly.) For example, if you look at Matthew 18:15-20, don’t rush through it. What did Jesus actually do with Tax Collectors and Pagans?? Find out if you don’t know.  Break up in smaller groups again if you have to.  How has this changed your viewpoint on what you had to obey in the scripture? How does this affect your decision? Delay your final decision. Go away and pray about it again and then come back (in whatever time you decided upon) and make your final decision together.  Remember the Body is not a democracy. It is a theocracy; Jesus should have the last word about how to conduct His church!

We hope this helps. When in doubt go to your knees.

Blessings from the team of MGAH

Addendum: ORID Part 2 - when all else fails (written much later for these troubled times)