Most of us are conversant with the biblical story of Jonah in the belly of the whale. I find the narrative suitable for the illustration of today’s topic. Let’s break it down.
DIRECTION.
Jonah’s direction was to get to Ninenah, the capital of Assyria, to preach repentance and urge them to turn from their wicked ways. That was his God assigned destination and purpose. It was an instruction from God, which Jonah resisted because he didn’t want to preach salvation to a bunch of foreigners. He decided to run away and boarded a ship to escape. But there was a storm, and the ship was in danger of sinking. When the pagan sailors drew lots to see who brought bad luck, Jonah was fetched and thrown overboard, and the storm settled.
GUIDANCE.
The route and the steps that took Jonah to his destination was his guidance. God wanted Jonah to follow an easy and normal means of transportation to Nineveh. But he aborted that, and God instructed a whale to swallow and vomit him after three days. After the whale vomited him, he decided to obey God. He went to Nineveh, preached and converted about 120,000 people, and God spared Nineveh from punishment.
Like Jonah, everybody has a direction to get to a particular destination in life. But the different steps taken along the way is the guidance to that destination.
The element of direction and guidance is all about the where and the how to think, plan, and reach a certain destination. Jonah knew the where, but his stubbornness twisted his how, which made the journey turbulent and longer before he reached his destination.
To chase a future and to desire a fulfilling life is to have a direction. The big question is, is their a proper guidance? What are the steps to take towards that desired destination? If these steps and processes are missed, the destination may be prolonged or aborted. Therefore, guidance is the continuous daily efforts made to achieve desired targets and purpose in life.
Whether it is career guidance, relationship guidance, spiritual guidance, and so on, true guidance entails following instructions, making sacrifices, staying focused, being attentive, navigating through the odds, and controlling the steers in the path of a destination. It involves the support, advice, and encouragement from superior sources in order to achieve a particular goal. On this note, the responsibilities assigned, the instructions given, or the tasks undertaken represent the direction, whilst the advice or support or encouragement obtained to achieve this represents the guidance.
This article is aimed at awakening the minds of the young ones to understand the intent of direction and guidance and apply them appropriately. In any basic human pursuit, it is a need to set clear goals, provide clear expectations, give regular feedback, and define each set target. With that, there will be an effective balance between guidance and direction and a formidable step towards achieving a goal.
Amara Ann Unachukwu
