Shortly after Jeanie and I were married, we were fresh out of Bible College and I was doing some teaching. The associate pastor of our church approached us in private with a very flattering word. He said that God had told him to gather an elite circle of you couples for him and his wife to mentor. He talked about the very high calling God had for this group and said God had selected us to be a part of this special work of God. The families would move from Texas to California together and work as a team. The man was sanctioned by our church as the associate pastor. What he said sounded very promising. It was consistent with our passionate desire to serve the Lord. What he said to us was very flattering. But when we prayed about it, we received a strong caution from the Holy Spirit. We heard God for ourselves! We declined the offer. A group of young couples went to California with this minister and his wife. It was a disaster for those involved. Some of the marriages broke up. I don’t know all the details of what happened. But I know enough to know God spared us from a very harmful experience.
Note: This story is in sermon entitled "Nine Tests of Prophecy" by Richard Tow. The senior pastor in this story did not know the associate pastor was secretly drawing away these young couples. My wife and I did not know that the plan was not sanctioned by the senior pastor.