I can't tell you how many times partners tell me they have spent an entire night in anguish over a "prophecy" someone has given them which was, supposedly, "from the Lord." Confused, distraught-and sometimes even devastated, they can't sleep. They wonder if it really is the Lord talking to them. Often, they have doubts.

If one such "word" is weighing heavily on your heart tonight, let me offer you three guidelines from God's Word to help you discern the source of the "prophecy."

The Apostle Paul tell us, "...he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men" (I Corinthians 14:3, NKJV).

Let me ask you: How did you feel after receiving this "word from the Lord"...built up? Comforted?

Encouraged? Exhorted? If you felt condemned, torn down or devastated, something is very wrong. Although God may sometimes warn or entreat you, His purpose through others is never to strike at you or shock you with some "revelation," you are totally unprepared for.

God is love. What was the spirit of what you were told and how was it told to you? Can you say without a doubt that it was spoken in love?

Remember always to "test the spirits" to discern God's perfect will in your life.

Heavenly Father, I thank You for using my brothers and sisters to help build, comfort, encourage, and sometimes warn me. Increase my powers of discernment with which to "test the spirits" so that I may know what is of You. I now forgive anyone who has spoken to me falsely, and ask You to help them grow in discernment, too. In Jesus' Name, Amen.