How dreams can help with guidance from God

How and why God guides us, guidance dreams in the bible, and how dreams can help with guidance today.

What is guidance?

Why do we need guidance from God, and how do we get it?

This article explores these questions from a biblical perspective, plus how interpreting our dreams can help with guidance – with real dream examples.

I approach dream interpretation from a biblical perspective. My belief is that our dreams can come from God, and understanding them is best understood within the context of an ongoing relationship with Him.

If you have just come across this post and are new to dream interpretation, you might find it helpful to see my free ultimate guide to Interpreting dreams from God.

Why do we need God’s guidance?

Guidance is one of the most talked about subjects in Christian circles: Everyone seems to want it, but often can’t seem to get it!

All of us need some degree of guidance in life – both in the big decisions and in the small day-to-day ones.

These days there is so much information available at our fingertips. We can search anything we need to know online, and it’s right there! We can go to Artificial Intelligence and get a summary of mankind’s knowledge on a subject. But in some ways this makes getting the right guidance harder: There can be too much advice to choose from!

So we need to get our advice from a good source – a source that is both wise and specific. We need someone who knows us well; someone who has our best interests at heart and can give us personally tailored advice from a higher perspective to help us make the best decisions…

…and I believe that person is God!

What does it mean to let God guide us?

Generally, guidance is used to mean the process of God communicating to us what we should do in a situation. This may include where, when, and how to do it. And, if we’re lucky, it might include why we should do it!

Guidance is how God communicates to us what to do in a situation.

God imparts heavenly wisdom and understanding so we can make good decisions and act accordingly.

God has good plans for our life

Seeking God’s guidance implies that we are willing to trust him. Therefore, we must settle the question in our heart about God’s character and whether we believe his plans are best for us.

We know from the bible that God has a book in heaven written about us, sometimes called our scroll of destiny. This is like our personal life-navigation map, and the plans written in it are good; they are plans to ultimately give us a great future – even if it’s hard along the way:

• Psalm 139:16, NIV All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
• Jeremiah 29:11, NIV For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

We also know that God wants the best for us, because he was willing to lay down his own life for us; that’s how much he loves us and is committed to our success!

• John 10:11, NIV “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

Would we set off on a journey to an unknown place without some kind of map or navigation device? Probably not. Then why would we try to navigate this life without the guidance of the One who knows the best route?

Trusting God to guide us

As a young Christian, I can remember trying to decide on the best career path. I prayed and sought God, but no lightning bolt of revelation struck. I made a decision, but I worried about it – and continued to worry about guidance in general for many years. I longed to hear God’s voice more clearly.

If only I’d known all those years ago what I know today; I could have saved myself a great deal of angst!

Many people worry about guidance, in case they somehow ‘mess up’ the plans God has for their life by doing the wrong thing.

I now know from experience that we don’t need to worry about messing up, because God himself promises to guide us if our desire is to follow him. Jesus said as much in his sheep illustration:

• John 10:3-4, NIV …the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them… he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.

I have come to see that God is perfectly able to make his will known to us if we want to follow him. Knowing this truth brings peace – and takes the anxiety out of the process.

In addition, he can even guide us whilst we are unaware! I have many testimonies where I can see afterwards that God guided me, but I don’t know how he did it!

Our part is to trust him and rely on him; his part is to lead us and make sure we are going the right way, just like a shepherd would do with his sheep:

• Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Guidance is about relationship

In the end, guidance is all about our relationship with God, and knowing him personally. God walks with us, explains things to us, prepares us, encourages us, and guides us. We do not have to walk alone!

• 1 Peter 2:25, NIV For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

It’s a journey that develops over time, which gradually becomes less about ‘guidance’ and more about being ‘in Him’:

• Initially, we make a decision to trust his guidance and act accordingly. We begin to learn to hear God’s voice in different ways and choose to obey.
• As we take steps of faith and follow his leading, we build a personal track record over time until we genuinely trust his guidance and seek it more and more.
• As our relationship with God matures, ‘what to do’ becomes an ongoing conversation with him, and guidance often flows instinctively from his Spirit within us – without us having to think too much about it.
• We come increasingly to a place of peace and surrender: In him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28, NIV).

Ultimately, our goal is not so much about ‘doing the right thing’, but, rather, being in relationship with the Living God, who IS the Way (John 14:6). When we are ‘in him’, we are in the right place.

Our aim is to be in relationship with God, who IS The Way.

Ultimately, it is our responsibility to develop our relationship with God so we can discern what he is saying. The good news is that the Holy Spirit will mentor us and correct us along the way if we commit our way to him.

Guidance and hearing God’s voice

Receiving guidance from God involves learning to hear his voice and discerning his heart – so we can understand what we need to do and act accordingly.

To receive God’s guidance we need to hear his voice and discern his heart.

There are many different ways God can communicate with us. Here is a brief roundup of some common ways:

• Through the bible: God can bring bible verses and passages to our attention which are relevant to our situation.
• Through thoughts and impressions: God can guide us via thoughts, impressions and feelings.
• Through pictures and visions: There are many examples in the bible of God speaking in these ways.
• Through real life signs: God can guide us through events, circumstances, art, media, TV, things we read or see – plus many other signs, if we pay attention.
• Through other people: Other people may send us a prophetic word, say just the right thing at the right time, or just be a wise person to bounce our ideas off and get witness to what God is saying.
• Through angels: Sometimes God will send an angel, or an angel will come in a dream. There are many examples of this in the bible.

And God also speaks to us through dreams! In fact, dreams were a major way God spoke and guided people in bible times.

This passage in the book of Job explains how God uses dreams to guide us:

For God speaks again and again,
    though people do not recognize it.
  He speaks in dreams, in visions of the night,
    when deep sleep falls on people
    as they lie in their beds.
  He whispers in their ears
    and terrifies them with warnings.
  He makes them turn from doing wrong;
    he keeps them from pride.
  He protects them from the grave,
    from crossing over the river of death.

Job 33:14-18, NLT

Guidance dreams in the bible

There are many dreams recorded in the bible, and some of those were for the purpose of guiding people. In dreams…

• They were given warnings and corrections.
• They were given instructions.
• They got strategies for success.
• They got directions to keep them safe.
• They were encouraged to keep going.

Here are some specific examples:

Dreamer	Bible reference	Purpose
Abimelek	Genesis 20:3-7	To warn him not to touch Sarah and to return her to Abraham.
Jacob	Genesis 31:10-13	To give him a successful goat breeding strategy.
Laban	Genesis 31:24	To correct him and prevent him acting in a way towards Jacob that he might later regret.
Pharaoh	Genesis 41:1-4 and 41:5-7	To warn him of a coming famine so he could make survival preparations for the land.
Joseph	Matthew 1:18-21	To correct him and encourage him to marry Mary, because he was planning to break off their engagement.
The Magi	Matthew 2:12	To warn them to go home a different way, so baby Jesus would not be put in danger.
Joseph	Matthew 2:13 and 2:19-22	Three dreams, each directing Joseph where to go at different times to keep Mary and baby Jesus safe.
Paul	Acts 16:9	Directing him on his missionary journey, calling him to visit Macedonia next.
Paul	Acts 18:9	Encouraging him not to be afraid and to keep speaking in Corinth, despite much opposition.

Those dreams gave them essential guidance and direction; they knew what to do because God guided them through their dreams – and God does same kind of things though our dreams today!

One time I was feeling demoralised at work and wondering if I was still meant to be there or whether I should leave. Then I had a dream that my work colleagues were calling me to come and help them.

I realised it was a calling dream, just like Paul’s dream of the Man from Macedonia in Acts 16:9 (above). The dream confirmed that God had a purpose for me being at that place of work, gave me peace about being there, and stopped me looking elsewhere unnecessarily.

Through dreams we can experience the same level of guidance that we read about in the bible accounts – and that’s the point! The bible is not meant to be an end in itself, but rather to springboard us into our own relationship with God.

Dreams can provide the same level of guidance that we read about in bible times.

How dreams can help with guidance

Understanding our dreams does take time some time and effort, as we need to learn God’s symbolic language – but it is worth making the effort if we really want to know him and be guided by him. I believe that anyone can learn to hear God through their dreams.

Here are some ways God can use dreams to guide us today, with real dream examples:

Dreams can help with big decisions

When we have a big decision to make, our dreams can be very helpful.

Here is a real example from a friend of mine:

I dreamed I was in the garden.  From the overgrowth came a small baby snake, suddenly trying to strike my ankle. I jumped back but stopped to look at the snake. The markings were very bright orange, red and amber. Then, someone said, “Be careful- even a baby can give you a nasty bite. It might not kill you but it’ll still give you a headache, so I’d get outta here very quickly!” So, I ran away.

Snakes in dreams are usually negative, and it seems so in this case as it was trying to bite her. They can often represent a lie or wrong idea. Its main colours were orange-amber based. Negative orange carries a sense of something that has gone on longer than it should. Amber also suggests a warning.

The spoken message in the second paragraph was a very clear warning statement: Something short and seemingly harmless could lead to a big headache if she wasn’t careful. The advice was to ‘leave quickly’!

At the time my friend was seeking God’s guidance about her current job and feeling that it was time to leave. But out of the goodness of her heart, she was thinking she might stay on and help a little longer. This dream was confirming that her feeling was right. The dream gave her the confidence to move on, and she now has a great new job.

This dream is an excellent example of how God uses dreams to give us very clear guidance about big decisions and to help us avoid potential pitfalls.

Dreams can help with daily choices

As well as the big decisions, dreams can help with the smaller things and provide guidance in the day-to-day challenges we face.

One of the great advantages of dreams is that we have them every night, So, if we pay attention to them and make time for praying about them each day, we can develop a very close walk with God – and have ongoing conversations with him through their messages.

A family member was struggling with the pre-Christmas busyness and feeling anxious. She had the following dream:

She dreamed that the tennis player Andy Murray was playing a tennis novice, and hitting wildly and losing. She advised him just to calm down and focus on keeping the ball in court, and he went on to win!

This dream was reflecting her wild activity, and she was actually advising herself! As a result she calmed down and just focused on what she was able to do – and it completely changed her December experience.

Dreams can act as confirmation

In practice, I have found that God normally uses several different ways to confirm his guidance in any given situation.

I find that I often have a vague sense of what God is saying, maybe from a feeling or impression, or from something I read in the bible. But then, God will give me a dream that confirms what I was thinking – but in a clear way that brings it into focus, removes doubt, and gives me confidence that I have heard correctly.

The previous snake dream was a good example of that. Here is another example that one of my friends sent me:

They dreamed their dog rushed into the garden and leapt over the fence. However, there were larger, violent dogs over there and it got caught in a larger dog’s mouth. It managed to get back into the garden, but it was a struggle and may have got hurt.

The dog was representing various new God-given ideas they had. This dream was saying they should be careful what they shared (keep thoughts within their garden), because other people might criticise their ideas (in larger dog’s mouth) and hinder them at this stage.

They knew the dream was about that particular scenario because it was exactly what they had been feeling in real-life, but weren’t completely sure. This dream brought certainty.

Generally speaking, the bigger the risk involved with a decision, the stronger the confirmation God gives us. This could be by a greater strength of revelation (such as an impactful dream, vision or heavenly encounter), or by confirming the message in lots of different ways.

The bigger the risk involved, the greater the confirmation God usually gives us.

These confirmations might be from having a number of dreams on the same subject, or by God speaking through lots of different ways.

God can get our attention through dreams

And finally, valuing our dreams (and paying attention to them) means that God always has a means of communicating with us if he needs to – whether to warn us, save us, adjust our course, or just give us a nudge in the right direction.

Everybody dreams, so God always has a way of getting our attention if we listen to them.

We saw that principle operating in the biblical examples listed above: Those events were significant times in biblical history, so it’s not surprising that the dreams were documented, and that they were dramatic interventions.

Most of the time, our dreams deal with our daily Christian walk. God uses them to transform our character and thinking, and to help us see his perspective in what we are going through. They generally improve our life experience and relationship with him.

But sometimes, God really does need to get our attention! He might do this through a dream, for example:

• We can wake up in the night sweating, or with heart racing, after a dream.
• We can have repeating dreams, or several dreams the same in one night.
• We can have dreams with clear messages and instructions in them.
• We can have vivid dreams that grab our attention.

Here is an example:

I dreamed a good friend of mine was at my house and told me she had had an alarming dream. In it, she had been given the following message about her son: “You need to make a change now to invest in his destiny”.

I knew that this friend was reflecting me, and her son represented something I was doing. There was a very direct message in the dream! It was at the time I was starting this blog – and I was able to stop and seek God about what I needed to do differently – and I made the change.

The truth is that God knows how each of us thinks, and he knows what kind of dream will get through to us. This assurance brings a great sense of security and peace. It lifts the burden off us, and we can relax and trust God to guide us.

When we know God can get our attention, it lifts the burden off us and brings peace.

Dream symbols about guidance

As we have seen in this article, there are many ways God can give us guidance through dreams. But there are a few dream symbols that more commonly relate to guidance:

Being chased: Being chased can indicate that we are running from our destiny in some way.

GPS and Google maps: These are a common dream symbol for me, and usually represent guidance from the Holy Spirit (the internet can represent our heavenly connection).

Journeys: Journeys in dreams (travelling, walking, driving, etc.) are usually symbolic of our life journey. The things that happen on the journey relate to things we are going through, or that we will go through (i.e. things ‘down the road’). Choices like making turns, stopping, choosing which way to go, are all about making the right choices. See also cars and vehicles.

Maps and compasses: Any dream that features looking at a map or some kind of navigation device can be about guidance and direction. Also see North, south, east and west.

Roads and paths: These are usually about our life journey (as above).

Trying to get home: This is normally about finding the right thing to do in a given situation – to move us towards our heavenly calling and destiny. It can also be about realising the truth in a situation and coming to a right/godly understanding.

Any of these types of dreams can be a prompt to seek God, or to review our dreams, to discern what he is saying.

Conclusion

We have seen how God used dreams to guide people in bible times, and how he does the same for us today:

• Dreams can help us hear God’s voice for both the bigger things and for the day-to-day decisions we make.
• Dreams can act as confirmation, and instil confidence about what we are feeling, in times when we are unsure about what God is saying.
• Plus, if we value our dreams, we know that God always has a way of getting our attention if he needs to, and if we need to adjust our actions.

We have seen how God is like a shepherd who continually guides us into our destiny and the good plans he has for us. That guidance flows from our relationship with him, and we can trust him to lead us if we surrender our life to him.

If you’d like to know God as your friend and guide, but don’t know where to start, please get in touch – I’d love to hear from you.

So why not give it a go and start listening to your dreams today? It does take time and effort, particularly to begin with… but the benefits are worth it!

If this article has helped or inspired you with dreams or guidance, please do like this article or leave a comment below!