“Prophets are a strange breed of men. They are God's emergency men for crisis hours. And the price of being a prophet is that a man has to live alone. All God's great men have been very, very lonely men.”

When I read words like this from Leonard Ravenhill, I'm challenged. When I look at the state of prophetic ministry today, I'm grieved.

Ravenhill was known for his no-comprising, hard-hitting, sin-blasting messages. He carried the spirit of a prophet. He carried a spirit like John the Baptist that laid the ax to the root—but he didn't do it with a critical, condemning heart. He did it with pure and undefiled love forged in the fire of God.

As I travel the nation teaching spiritual warfare principles, one truth becomes painfully clear: the body of Christ, at large, lacks discernment.

The reality is many have simply not been activated or trained to discern spirits. Yet discernment is a vital gift in this hour as false prophets, false teachers and even false christs are rising around the world with smooth sayings, rhymes and riddles.

Discerning of spirits is one of the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit Paul lists in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11. It is the Holy Spirit-inspired ability to distinguish between the operations of the Holy Spirit, a demon spirit or the human spirit. Discerning of spirits is especially helpful in prophecy, when we need to test the spirits to see if they are God (1 John 4:1). It's also vital in spiritual warfare so that we accurately determine what we're battling instead of just beating the air through guessing games (1 Cor. 9:26).

Whether I'm speaking at churches, making intercession at the Awakening House of Prayer at home, or sitting behind my computer, I can count on getting at least one prophetic word every week. It's like clockwork.

That may sound awesome, and it may be if they were accurate. Unfortunately, many of the prophecies that are announced, decreed and declared over my life are absolutely bogus. In other words, these utterances did not emanate from the Spirit of God.

Don't get me wrong. I certainly don't despise prophecy. In a revival setting, I'll prophesy over just about anybody you put in front of me. But I appreciate responsible prophecy—prophecy that the giver has judged before they start announcing massive directional shifts in my life and ministry.

I've seen some disturbing prophetic words on the Internet recently regarding specific dreams and visions over high-profile leaders in the body of Christ.

One of those words described a vision of two publicly named spiritual generals down on their knees repenting to one another, suggesting that another great awakening hinged on this act. A second prophecy suggested a different leader—again, publicly named—was fighting for his life because he did something illegal in the spirit that let the devil attack him.

Needless to say, I was disappointed to read these articles online and more disappointed that others picked up on them and parroted what they read, even adding their own interpretations and speculations. I reached out to some of the authors but the practice continues—and it grieves me.