Culbone Chapel, Exmoor

Culbone Chapel

I spent a week on Exmoor visiting the chapel several times over this time. For those who know my website, this is a favourite and very special place for me, a place where I seek refuge from the storms of life, coming aside to be with Jesus. I visit as often as I can in the natural, but I also frequently find myself there in my prayer times when I’m facing demanding situations. God leads me to the sanctuary of rest and refreshment that I always find in this hidden, far from the beaten track chapel.

We walk down the ancient pilgrim route across private land from Parsonage Farm where we are staying. The owners give permission but it's not a public right of way any more. It's amazing to walk this ancient path, knowing pilgrims have trekked it down the centuries.

This time of visits was in the autumn, late September, as the hint of change is in the air, the temperature drops, the autumnal rains begin and the colours on the trees begin to flush from green to rust, to yellow. Yet sunshine penetrates sharply amidst the showers and rainbows fill the skies daily bringing reminder of God’s promise of love and mercy.

So, my first visit during this week was an encounter with Jesus. After an angel welcomed me, I sat in a pew praying and waiting. Jesus came and sat in the pew in front of me but facing me. He poured his love and comfort into me as I shared struggles I’m walking through with health, a loved one’s health, pain and lack of courage for the future. As is often the way, he listened lovingly but then had a different agenda. He gently brought to my mind hurts from decades ago when I was shamed by others, for my prophetic seer gift, and he reminded me of the pain I had felt. I thought I had dealt with it, the individuals forgiven, repentance on my part done – yet he highlighted there was a deeper level to go to. So we spent time dealing with the pains of the past which were triggering pain in the present. Oh how he knows us better than we know ourselves. It was a precious time.

The next visit was a beautiful time of worshipping Jesus in song and sensing the angels gathering to join with us. My husband was with me, kneeling at the altar and I watched as angels placed a light golden mantle around his shoulders, an equipping for the days ahead. It was another precious time.

During the third and final visit of the week I have an encounter in the Spirit realm. It's very personal but I thought I'd share it because it may encourage you to know God will speak to you personally and individually too. This isn't about me! I want to encourage you to reach out for more of God. It's always immensely humbling to have an experience like this, to hear how heaven sees you and to know there is so much more than our earthly existence!

I see an angel with his wings upstretched and a path leading into the distance in the spirit realm. The angel turns towards the path and tells me to follow him ‘to the holy hill.’ We walk the path and settle on a grassy raised mound which has amazing views. The angel begins to speak, ‘These are the lands you’ve traversed to get here. Now look up.’ An eagle is soaring above me. It lands and I’m told to climb on and hold tight. The eagle lifts off vertically, like a helicopter, and climbs thermals swiftly, heading into light so bright that I can’t look and yet I can glimpse the heavenly city.

I hear a voice speaking, ‘You need to know you are seated on the vantage point but also in the heavenly places and soaring above the Badlands, even though you dwell among them.’ I hadn’t heard that term before but knew it was referring to normal living on the earth.

I see a whole cloud of witnesses cheering me on with phrases like, ‘Here she comes!’ as I fly by on the eagle. I hear my late husband Geoff saying, ‘You can do this sweetheart,’. Then my mother, ‘Come on darling, be strong.’ There are even Celtic saints there gathering around me and King Brychan saying, ‘That’s my girl!’ Each one of the witnesses gives me a red scented rose. ‘You are a trusted one. Come on, let’s go see Jesus.’ We run through the cloud of witnesses up a flight of steps. I’m in the centre of these people, flanked by them, and wearing a beautiful gown. Jesus waits at the top of the steps and there is so much joy in the meeting. He hugs me, takes my hand and we walk off together for an intimate time, one on one. The crowd don’t follow, sensing it’s a special time not to be intruded upon.

Jesus begins to speak, ‘You will make it Kathy. I have ordained you for such a time as this. Dwell in me and I will be in you. You’ve come through fire and storms, pruning and testing. I have refined you, reshaped you and prepared you. Come let me show you.’

There’s a map laid out in front of us. I know they are battle plans but as yet, I can’t see the details. Jesus continues, ‘You will know at the appointed time but remember it’s all here waiting for you.’ I hear him saying, ‘Go back now’ but I don’t want to. I want to stay with Jesus, yet I find myself back on the grassy mound, the vantage point with amazing views. I return down the path accompanied by the angel, through an arch which is a portal back to earth and the Badlands. But my heart has joy, and I can see a red heart dripping with oil is in my chest and my hands are also dripping with oil in the vision. I know I have encountered Jesus in a profound and unique way. Once again I leave Culbone having been refreshed, encouraged and humbled.

I next visited Culbone a couple of years after these accounts above, once the Covid crisis and lockdowns were dim memories. Friends came with us and whilst praying in the church one of them had a beautiful vision which I share here. He saw water flowing like a stream down the aisle towards the altar. He prayed into the vision when he got home and sensed it was a strong flow of God's Spirit, a purifying stream. He felt Culbone is a strategic centre for when persecution comes to Christians again.