This episode is especially special to me as I have my very own sister, Tamsin, on the show.

Our family had to endure a heart wrenching season in 2019 of walking through Tamsin’s breast cancer diagnosis. To say it was a shock to us all is an understatement as she was only 37 years old when diagnosed.

The good news is that after numerous chemo treatments and surgery, she is now doing well.

Listen in to her story of hope and healing and be blessed!

GUEST BIO:

Tamsin Wroot is a motivational speaker; Levite worshipping prophet who receives Words of Revelation from God to His people the Church. A survivor of three near-death experiences including surviving breast cancer, she encourages others to walk in a close relationship with Jesus. As a chaplain and leader of a prayer group, she serves in a church in York UK. She’s a mom to one young son and a fur baby dog. Her teaching is based on Biblical content whilst relating it to practical and easy to understand ways to help you build strength in your faith.

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As a Mindset Coach I’m here to help you shift your thinking and unlock your full potential! If you’re needing support, encouragement and accountability; consider joining my group coaching program Unstick Your Mind.

TRANSCRIPT

Mimika: Hello, and welcome to Mimika TV. I’m your host, Mimika Cooney. Today, I have an extra special treat for you, because we have someone extra special to me. I know I’m biased, but I’m allowed to be, because it’s my show. Today, we have my gorgeous and wonderful youngest sister, Tamsin, who is going to be on the show today. And the reason why I’m excited about this, besides the fact that I know a lot about her, I want you guys to know a lot about her too, because she has a fabulous story and a testimony of, just to name a few things, besides the fact that we grew up in a strange environment and the different ways we were raised, you will even notice the accents are different, yes. I have the South African and she has the British cause she had the opportunity to finish high school in Britain with a posh accent.
So if we sound weird, it’s just because we are. But the biggest thing I want her to share about today is how most recently she had to go through a very trying journey of going and surviving breast cancer. So without further ado, I’d love to introduce you to my gorgeous and wonderful youngest sister Tamsin, welcome to the show.
Tamsin: Hello. Thank you for having me.
Mimika: Don’t you love her accent? It’s so fabulous. I’m always teasing her. People hear us and go, “Are you really sisters?” I’m like, “Yes, I’m the older one, I’m the bossy one,” she’ll admit that I’m always telling her what to do, even before we hit record I’m like, “You’re going to do this,” and she’s like, “Oh, it’s so [inaudible 00:01:45],” right? So today’s going to be super fun, especially because this to me is exciting to be able to share this story with you, because it’s a lot of what we’ve been going through as a family as well.
That often isn’t out there, because not all of us want to share our warts and all and the struggles we have, because just like Instagram, we want to be picture perfect and just show the famous side of things as opposed to what’s really going on. So I’m really excited to dive into Tamsin’s story, and the [feminist 00:02:16] lessons that she’s got to share with you. But enough about me and my talking, let’s get to sharing a little bit about you, so tell our audience, Tam, about you and your background and how you got to where you’re doing today.
Tamsin: Okay. So yes, born in South Africa, yes she is my sister. Yes, I know it sounds strange. We obviously grew up in a Christian family. Our parents divorced when we were… I was five, you were 10. And then my mom remarried, we did some outreach work in some shanty towns, and then we came to the UK when I was about 15. Basically fast forward met my husband, had my child, and then I got diagnosed with breast cancer, so yeah.
Mimika: Yeah. So that was a real fast-forward way of… That’s easy, you can explain a bit more, but really what we want to dive into is, all of us have a story, and all of us have something that we’re struggling with. Everybody’s struggling with something, and sometimes we think we’re the only ones, because that’s what the enemy wants to do. He wants to keep us isolated, he wants to think we’re the crazy ones, that no one else knows what we’re going through. But I can guarantee you, someone else has gone through, or is going through what you are going through. And your testimony and sharing a story is really going to be someone’s breakthrough, because if you think about it, there are people praying right now for an answer, and you just might be it. So Tam, share a little bit about the story.
So we know… We both grew up in South Africa, I finished school in South Africa. You went and moved away with mom and her husband and finished school there. So tell us a little bit about, because we, as you mentioned, we grew up in a Greek Orthodox family, our dad is Greek. Going to church for Easter and doing the little red eggs and all the meat, that was super fun. But then of course we went through church upbringing, but tell everybody about that story, about why you felt that there was something triggered the questioning, right, when you actually decided, “Is this something I actually believe?”
Tamsin: Okay well, when I came to the UK, I fell away from being a Christian. I went off the rails a bit and met my husband, and I came to a point where I didn’t really like who I was becoming, or what I was doing and how I was behaving. I was very aggressive, very just miserable really. And it was a pinnacle moment of thinking, “Well, which road am I going down,” and I had quite a intense experience one night, where I came to the realization of, “Oh, oh yes, I remember this God and this Jesus,” and, “Oh, I remember when I was younger things actually happened, and I saw things.” So then I started to dig into that a bit more and looking for a church and looking for answers really. From there, it’s been a snowball effect.
Mimika: So even all those lessons and being in church as a child, we think that’s something you’re going to do for the rest of your life. But sometimes things happen and you start to question things, but what I find amazing is that even those lessons that you learned in those moments you’ve had with God, that he didn’t forget about you, even when you were off on your own doing your thing. God still loves us, even when we make mistakes, when we do things that don’t please him. But the good thing is that there’s always that forgiveness and there’s always that reconciliation, which I think is totally beautiful. So tell us a little bit about that, so after that, you find your way back, you start searching for the Lord, and you really are trying to strengthen your relationship. And then you had your son, and then what happened after that?
Tamsin: So yeah, we got married, we had my son who’s now six, and we spiraled into quite a bad marriage dynamic. It got to the point where we had to go for counseling, because it was on the brink of divorce and I thought, “Here we go, history repeating itself,” and I didn’t really want it to happen, and that’s why as a last resort, we went down the road of counseling. And it was such an eye-opener and a blessing that God opened the doors the right time, the right person to help walk us step-by-step. So we came out of that stronger, and then it was a case of, “Okay, I’ll look for some work. I’ve been out of work,” and I thought, “Well, I want to get back into some sort of career or earn some money, take the pressure off the bills with John, and just help overall contribute.”
I think it was about a year trying in my flesh, which we know doesn’t actually work by the way, I finally got to the point where I laid it all down. I said, “Okay, God, I can’t do this anymore. I’ve been doing it and actually I’ve been doing it in all the wrong ways. I trust you to guide me in the right path,” and then out of the blue, I got diagnosed with breast cancer. I thought, “Ah, okay.” It was hard, it was a really hard time, because there’s always seems to be hills and valleys in my life, I’ve noticed. And I thought, “Well, I’m not on my own here, I’ve got God with me.” I don’t know how people that don’t have God cope, in this situation.
And I had to lay it all down again and be like, “Okay, I’m just going to lie here, I’m going to listen to music, I’m going to read when I can, meditate on the word and just be still,” and it forced me to do that. And from that, I got this great sense of peace and breakthrough in myself, in my spiritual journey, in my relationship with God. And as much as it was hard, it really did help me move forward in where I needed to be, so yeah.
Mimika: Well, we can dive, there’s lots of layers, right? So really what I observe about the whole story is, we can push and shove, and push and shove. I had something similar in terms of pushing something with my business, but realized is that God was preparing me something, because he knew what was happening. So for your situation, it wasn’t the right time for you to get a job, because he knew that it wouldn’t be good for the focus and the energy that would be required of you. And also to say that you received your diagnosis, it was in fact the day after Christmas, we were all like, “Yeah, well,” and then “What?”
It was almost the shock of how can this happen, because what, you were 37, which is very young. And it’s not something that we’ve had to deal with. Well, we’ve had other family members who’ve had cancer, but not at this age. So talk about a shock for you and, “Okay, I must be young, and I have all these plans, and I’m going to have my kids, and then do my job,” and we have all these things that we think we just take for granted that are going to happen in our lives. And when something hits you like this, like an oncoming freight train, it really makes you stop and reassess, right?
Tamsin: Yeah, and I think if we need to be honest as human beings who are fragile and are not perfect, is that we’re going to have moments of “Why?” And the whole journey of the shock, the anger, the sadness, the doubting of, “Did I do something? Is there any sin? And just really mulling over all these different questions. And yeah, I mean, let’s be perfectly honest, you can use this as an example for anything in life, that hits you.
You gotta make a choice on your perspective, you can either dwell in it and be miserable and just suck into a pit, or you can say, “I know the goodness of God, I know and I trust in his truth, and I meditate on the truth. I’ve known and I’ve seen miracles, and I know this is not the end.” And I had, in a weird way, peace that I knew that this wasn’t the end, and it was just a body part that didn’t really matter because I could still walk, I could still talk. I could hear, I could still enjoy being a mum, seeing my child grow up and be a wife, and have a fruitful future.
And I knew that God said that this is not unto death, so I was like, “Okay, I’m just going to use this as the time to really dig deep in my relationship with God, and really seek his face and what he’s saying to me, what he’s trying to show me and teach me.” And I had to learn to slow down in that experience, which I think we all need to do, I think at one point in our lives, or a lot of times in our lives, just to stop and be still.
Mimika: Yeah. And that’s a hard thing, right? We get uncomfortable in the silence. God’s like, “I just want you to rest.” And resting, we think resting is having a sleep, but resting is calming of the mind, where you’re not constantly thinking and ruminating on, “What about this? Maybe if I tried that, maybe if I didn’t, what did they say? Did they really say that? I don’t think, did they really mean that?” That perpetual thinking that exhausts us and gets us into really, when we don’t get the results we want, we then start questioning and pushing against, or doing things in our own strength. In in this instance you had no choice, you literally went through chemo. How many rounds did you have again? I mean, it seems like endless.
Tamsin: It was six sessions, every three weeks, with tablets in between and steroid tablets. And I had a cold cap, which I don’t know if some of you know, is where they freeze your head and your hair, and that’s why I still got some hair.
Mimika: Yes, you saved two follicles. [crosstalk 00:13:17]. But it’s painful as well, sitting there, you basically have a freezing cold shower cap and you’re shivering, and you’ve got this medication that’s making you feel disgusting and not to mention, afterwards how awful you felt after the chemo. And then, also talk to us a little bit how you were feeling as a mom, where you feel like you’ve got a four year old at this stage. Four, five year old, and not being able to do what you needed to.
Tamsin: I felt almost frustrated, because I wanted to do more and have more time with the family, and just do more stuff as a mum. And I was a bit concerned if my son Thomas would cope, but to be honest we were very upfront with him, obviously age appropriate, in what we said. They even gave us a book to read to him at night, which was great. And he just took it really well, and he knew that mommy was resting, daddy had to go to work and he started school. So the timing actually worked out quite well, because he started school, and I was able to have that time at home just to rest.
So yeah, in hindsight I always felt like, “Oh, I wonder if I’ll ever get that time back,” and I feel like I did with COVID, I know we’re jumping ahead a bit, but COVID kind of gave me back all that was lost and more, so it’s almost like the Job situation where it’s like, “I’ll give you double for your trouble.” I mean, don’t quote me exactly, but it was all made back up [crosstalk 00:15:04].
Mimika: So all those times where you were exhausted and you couldn’t play with him the way you wanted to, with COVID everybody’s at home. And of course, because of your immune system, you have to be extra careful, so you couldn’t really have visitors and guests. But it was just the three of you as a family really doing things together, baking and bonding. I mean, it’s hilarious, you should see the cute videos I get, it’s just so hilarious keeping everybody amused. But the fact that you feel better now, and also just to let everybody know, you also went through breast reconstruction surgery and that went well too, and you are a hundred percent cancer free, right?
Tamsin: That’s right, and I had my yearly mammogram in July, and that came back clear, so [crosstalk 00:15:42].
Mimika: Yeah, so praise the Lord for that. There’s always complete healing, even though you have the scars, it just is a way to remind you that that’s God’s faithfulness, that even though he knew that this was what you would be going through, not to say that he causes it, but he will use everything. And that during those silent seasons where you were really having to lay back on your bed and not be able to do anything, those are the moments that God really uses to our benefit and says, “I’ve got something to say to you. I want to share this with you.” And he just wants to get to know us. And [crosstalk 00:16:14], you were more closer.
Tamsin: But I think there’s something that needs to be made quite clear, is that when people suffer suffering or hardship in the world they say, “Oh, God’s done this.” And it’s like, “No, God is good, God is love. He does not cause things like this,” and it’s to remember that we have an enemy prowling around like a lion wanting to steal, kill, and destroy, and God is saying, “No, I’ve got you, I’ve got you in my right hand,” and he gave me line Jeremiah 29, it’s a famous scripture about, if I know the thoughts and plans I have for you, thoughts [crosstalk 00:17:04].
Mimika: 29:11? Yeah.
Tamsin: Yeah, but then if you read on past welfare and peace and hope, he’s saying, “Call on me, pray to me, hear me, seek me, inquire, require, find me, search for me, and I will release you from captivity.” And I had to go through that scripture, literally in stages. I literally lived it out, and I knew that I knew that he was with me, and I knew that God is good and he would not let anything happen.
Mimika: He’s got promises for your life, and it reminds me of the story of when Jesus was in the boat and the storm came up, and the disciples were having a freak fest. He’s like, “Why are you freaking out?” Because he already knew he would be where he would be tomorrow, and the next day and the next month. And he already knew his destiny was to die to redeem us, so what’s this one little storm? Well, it wasn’t going to bother him, that’s why he could sleep peacefully, because he knew God’s promises had said he would survive, his destiny and his calling was to do something greater.
So I think that’s a really great lesson to learn that no matter where you are, and no matter what the world throws at you or what you experienced, whether it’s sickness, disease or relationships, or health or whatever, that all of these things can be used for our good, as long as we lean in and say, “Okay, God, what is it do you want me to learn?” And use those moments, because I think a lot of us are just uncomfortable with those. It’s so easy to just be a human doing stuff. “Let’s do this,” do the shopping and kids and business and whatever else and tick the boxes, but God’s more interested in us being human beings. So I think in that situation, you were forced to just chill, normal striving, and let’s get to the picture.
Tamsin: It’s also, for me, the words that I always think about is relationship. It’s all about relationship with him. He wants to walk with us along the ups and downs, in the small detail, in the large detail. He wants to be talking to us every day. He wants to be part of a relationship, and as the saying goes, there’s two sides to every story, there’s two in a relationship. And we can’t just keep coming to him all the time with a shopping list, we need to be more interactive with him, because that’s how he made us, to be his friend. And he’s there wanting to help us, and I know it’s all great saying this now in hindsight, but I honestly did feel so much peace knowing he was with me in those really dark times.
And I just thought, as much as my physical body was in pain, and the difficulty in concentrating, and sleeping, and everything, I knew that it wasn’t forever, and that I knew that it would be used for his glory in the future. So I accepted it to the point of, like you said, Mimika, “What are you trying to show me? What are you trying to teach me? What are you trying to pull out of me? What are you trying purify me,” in a way? That’s worked through some stuff together.
Mimika: Tell us a little bit… you had that word, the one about the refining fire, read that out for us, tell me about that.
Tamsin: So when I got baptized in the British sea, it was very cold. Yeah, I was in my early twenties and I got baptized when I was with my husband, and that was before we got married and before we had our son, and the quote they gave me as a declaration was, “My precious one, I’ve called you to be as pure gold, even liquid gold, melted and molded, ready for the master’s use.”
Mimika: And so how has that played out in your life?
Tamsin: Well I mean, I don’t know if anyone knows much about gold itself, and silver, but when you purify gold, you have to make it so hot that it becomes liquid, and that is a painful, obviously, process. So I know that all through my life interwoven way back from when I was little when we were at home together, all the way to where I am right now, there’s been these moments of refinement, and that the trials that Satan might throw at me have been used for God’s glory.
Mimika: Exactly. And you knowing that that is a promise that was made over your life, it’s prepares you, for you know you’re going into battle, and you know it’s going to get hot. And it’s going to get painful, because the refining fire isn’t supposed to be easy, but we know the results at the end are far greater than the raw material. And that’s what I think is great about God’s word, is he gives us these promises and these prophecies to help us look forward and say, “Okay, I know it’s going to get tough, and it’s not going to be comfortable, and it’s going to be painful, but if I know that I’m pressing towards the prize and that’s what he’s got for me,” we can really stay positive in that and not in denial, but we know that we can endure these trials, [crosstalk 00:22:34] it proves there’s something in the end.
Tamsin: Well, I think it goes back to that scripture of The vine and pruning, when you prune upon, again it’s going to be painful, but then it’s like, well, Jesus went through all that hardship for us, for our sins, which is just mind boggling what he had to go through and just, awesome sacrifice. But if he had hardships, what makes us exempt? So I’m not saying we should expect to have hard times all the time in our lives. No, I’m not saying that.
What I’m saying is we enjoy each day for today as tomorrow’s gone and the futures around the corner, but to just enjoy these moments with God and embrace that relationship, so that if anything did come about, that we can gird our loins, as it says in Judges about putting on our arm and saying, “Right, I’m going to get that righteous anchor, I’m going to be like, “Right. Not having this,” and just get really warrior mode and be like, “Okay, we’re doing this.”
Mimika: We’re not going to give up, we’re not going to give in. Don’t tell me I shall not. Watch me.
Tamsin: Yeah. We’re a very tenacious family.
Mimika: Yeah. She’s like, “What, are you challenging me?” Exactly. And that’s what I find so amazing is that even though you’ve gone through something hard, you are still able to then turn around and share this with others, because there always is hope. As I said, there’s such power in one’s testimony that we can share it, the good, the bad and the ugly, because somebody else is listening right now who really needs to have that encouragement. And as we know, the world has had to go through a complete shift in this rude awakening that we’ve had with Coronavirus, and a lot of people are struggling with the status quo, and saying, “What now? What next? What would I do?” And the reality has been shaken, and it’s hard.
But at the end of the day, I always think there’s good things. When there’s a change… Because nothing grows in a comfort zone. Then if we’re in a comfort zone for too long, things get stale, there’s no life there. We have to be willing to push and grow and move past our boundaries, because as we grow and take more ground, we then get more authority and we become more virtuous, so then we can then make available for everyone else.
Tamsin: I think, is it in Japan where they have… I was watching this kids’ TV cartoon movie, and it reminded me again from a long time ago. With the salmon jumping up the stream, it’s like they know where they’re going, they know it’s hard, but they are pushing forward going in the opposite direction. So it’s like, we are the salmon and the water is the world, and we have to keep pushing on to fight the good fight, to keep pushing into our destinies and our callings, and to not give up. And I always find that quite a sweet ritual of the salmon jumping up.
Mimika: Yeah, exactly. And you think it’s built for that? You think it’s crazy that the fish would go to that effort, but again, as you said, it knows where it’s going. It has purpose, and I think that is what we can really learn from the world today, is having purpose and knowing where you go will help you withstand storms knowing what the promises are, and having faith that the Lord will carry you through those dark time, and like you said, the Valley of the Shadow of Death, you able to be carried through that, because there’s only so much you can do. And when you let go of our control, and realize that God is the ultimate control, and he knows where he’s going, it’s so much more relaxing just to go, “Okay, God, what are we doing today? Okay, this is cool.” [crosstalk 00:26:24].
Tamsin: I’m glad you said that, because I was just going to pick up on what you said before about, we always thinking and worrying about tomorrow, and I always get that scripture as a reminder of, do you not know that the sparrows, they don’t worry what they eat, and the leaves of the flowers, they’re here today, gone tomorrow. We as human beings, have just got to stop worrying because it doesn’t produce anything. It’s just a waste of energy.
And we don’t have to worry because we just need to stop and breathe and just say, “Right, I’m going to do what today is today. And tomorrow will take care of itself. And I know that he is with me every step of the way,” and not rush off into the distance, like a headless chicken. I know that’s not a really lovely analogy, but just to calm and slow down, and in a way to use this time with COVID, to really just sit down and say, “Okay, God, what are you saying? What do I need to lay down and stop doing and striving, and what are you showing me in this?” And that will be the start of a lovely relationship and conversation.
Mimika: Definitely. It’s like getting in God’s plan.
Tamsin: And also yours as well.
Mimika: Exactly, when we are moving out of those comfort zones and we’re ready to say… And here’s the thing is that we need to move out of that situation of, “Okay, God, I need this and this, and this,” my little Christmas list, right? Where if we start saying, “Okay, God, what’s on your heart? How can I partner with you?” That is when we are in God’s grace. Things happen, we get favor, things flow. We don’t have to feel like we’re fighting all the time. We can feel that we are aligned with God’s plan for our lives and timing and seasons as well. That’s a whole discussion as well, about being in the right time and allowing yourself to go through those seasons. Because now, you wouldn’t be as strong as you are now, if you hadn’t gone through that really hard winter season of questioning.
Tamsin: In a way, it wouldn’t… Well, my whole life, I wouldn’t change it, all the experiences, because it’s made me who I am today. And more so recently than ever, I have felt such a shift spiritually in my development, in breaking a lot of things off my spiritual life, as being set free from such bondage that Satan had me thinking in a lot of different areas, which we won’t go into because it’s another story. But since that’s all been like slowly peeling away the onion, if should we use that analogy, the burdens are getting lighter and lighter to the point of now I’m just so happy, and I almost feel guilty of being happy and everyone’s going, “Ahh,” and I’m like, “What’s the problem?”
Mimika: Yeah, everyone is freaking out and we’re like, “I’m pretty much cool, I’m in the safer digging sand, I’m seeing constantly everyone’s running around.
Tamsin: Yeah, and I think when I was at home with the cancer treatment, it was the prelude to now of, “Oh, I’ve done this before at home. I’ve had to stay at home. Oh, I know how to do this, it’s okay. I’m not going to stress, because I just chilled last time that worked really well, so I’m going to do that again.”
Mimika: Exactly. What’s the point in striving and trying even if… I think it’s been good, and I always thinking that every challenge has its benefits. That even though it might seem hard in the moment, because when you’re going through something hard, it’s like getting your teeth pulled, who wants to redo that? But you know you’ve got to go to the dentist, because if you don’t get that tooth pulled, eventually it’s going to become a huge abscess and pain, then it’s another story. But at the end of the day, what it’s doing is it’s sharpening us, it’s making us more refined, it’s building our muscle. Because of that resistance, you can get stronger. And by us growing our strength and we are able to push through and to help others through the same journey, because we can turn around and help them in areas.
So I’m just so excited that you are where you are now. And even though I’m so glad that year is over, because that was just, even for myself as a sister, I had to question my faith about God, you got promise in Tamsin’s life. How can this be a death sentence? I don’t receive this. And then going through all sorts of emotions myself about, “Can I trust God with you?” And that’s something that we’ve had to learn as your family members, as well is its been a process, even though you’ve gone through it physically those around you are also feeling it in some way. And God uses all of that to refine us and to bring us back to the father’s heart. Because once we were aligned with who God wants us to be, then we can become effective for his kingdom.
I’m so excited. And I’m so proud of you because she’s in England and I’m in the USA, we’re five hours apart. So we don’t get to see each other very often, which sucks. So you can imagine having to deal with all this through email and text messaging, but just to see how much you’ve grown in the time that you have, and it’s just wonderful to see that. But tell us a little bit… I love to always see, you’ve got some major favor, you have these little what I call God rings, right? From the pink bicycles to Jasper, but tell everybody about those.
Tamsin: Yeah, so in the prerecorded part of this, we were chatting and I was just saying that I keep a thank you journal. And every time something happens, big or small, I write it in there. And last year or the year before, I got a pink bicycle, which was kind of like a Dutch bicycle with a basket on the front, and you sit up and you pedal along like a lady, and I’ve always wanted one, and then I got one. So I was like, “Oh, I’m writing that down.” And then it got me thinking about doing a thank you journal with some post-it notes, so I’ve done that as well, but I’m digressing.
And then just lots of little things, and then more recently it was… Well, it’s been about a year of research, and working out what to do, and chatting to other people about getting a dog, and I just felt that it was the time to have a dog. The first hurdle was getting the husband around the idea. So that was tick on the list.
Mimika: That took some time.
Tamsin: It did, but I mean, took my time with researching, because it’s a big commitment. It’s like having another child, and it needed to be right for us. And I felt led to look for dogs and obviously, with COVID, there’s a few scams going around. So I was quite aware I had to be a bit careful, and I kept laying it down and God said, “Pick it back up,” and I picked it back up and I would look online and then I would lay it down and get annoyed and be like, “Well, we can’t afford it. This one’s expensive, this one’s expensive.” And my husband, who is the Yorkshireman, which is a saying, which means he’s very tight with money…
Mimika: Yeah, he’s going to turn that over like, “Do we really need this?” You want the coupons.
Tamsin: Yeah, he likes his bargains. So it was like, “No, no, that’s too expensive, that one’s too expensive.” And I would lay down and be like, “That’s it, I’m not looking anymore,” and I just got to the end of my tether and I just thought, “I can’t do this anymore. I’m sick and tired of looking and being knocked back down and to the point of being really upset.” And I was saying to God, “What is going on? It’s really confusing.” And I’m getting really upset about this, and he was like, “Just keep looking, keep looking.” And anyway my husband and I had a chat, and I just said, “Lets just forget about it. Lay it down til the new year, and then save some money.” And then within the day, I got a call from, is it Mimika Cooney?
Mimika: I woke up in the morning and I was like, “Tamsin needs a dog, Tamsin needs dog.” I said to my husband, “Tamsin needs a dog,” and he goes, “I also feel Tamsin needs a dog.” You hadn’t told me anything about this, but you told me like a year ago about a dog, and I was like, “Oh, that’s cute.” We had one of our old [grannies 00:34:40]. She was fourteen, had passed away, and I was like, “I’m done with dogs. I don’t want puppies anymore.”
And I just really felt strongly that God was putting in my heart that “You need to get another dog, for the whole dynamics of the whole family.” And I resisted, and then one morning, I was like, “You getting a new dog, Tamsin needs a dog too.” So I batted my eyelids, ran up to my husband and I said, “I think Tamsin needs a dog. I’ve got an early Christmas present.” And he’s like, “Okay, sure.” I was like, [crosstalk 00:35:08], so we are very excited to be the auntie and uncle to your new baby that’s arriving soon. Little Jasper.
Tamsin: Little Jasper, yeah, little cockapoo. So yeah, no. I mean, burst into tears when you rang, and…
Mimika: I was like, “Why is she crying? Is something wrong?” [crosstalk 00:35:26].
Tamsin: John was gobsmacked, which is a British saying where you kind of go in shock. And he was just like, and I was like, “I did not say anything to her.”
Mimika: She said nothing. Like I say to my husband, “She’s crying. Was it a bad thing? I dunno, she’s upset. What was I doing?” Then you went to go see mom, and then you told mom, and you were bawling your eyes out, and mom’s like, “What’s going on?”
Tamsin: Yeah, so that’s what happens when you listen to the Holy Spirit and you be obedient, and then you will be blessed by being a blessing. So yes, we’re going to get Jasper the cockapoo on Thursday.
Mimika: That will be so exciting. To me, I love those God wins is that, we all have a part to play in somebody else’s blessing. That is to say we get blessed through other people being obedient and just, God says something and just being willing to say, “Okay, God, let’s do this.” And not worrying about how things are. We just do what we can do in us, in our little circle. And it’s amazing how God takes just that step of obedience and also faith, like okay, he’s got you. And sometimes it’s timing, sometimes there’s a certain thing that has to happen, or there’s certain timings that have to occur for these blessings to come. But that’s the thing is it’s almost like God’s like, “I see you. I know that little secret desire of your heart that you’ve maybe not spoken out loud.” But I just think it’s so wonderful when he does those little things, so it’s so encouraging.
So I’m so excited. I’m going to say thanks to you for joining me. It took a little while to get this organized because we have a bit of a time delay, but this is the way it works. But I’m so excited We got to share your story, because it really has been a tremendous testimony of how you’ve been able to keep your faith, and even despite all the things that you’ve been through in your past, that God has been able to use it as a testimony. So now we’re pushing you out on your boat, putting you out there, there’s no going back now, are you sure in yourself and your testimonies? I’m just going to say, you can tell in our relationship, I’ll be like, “Oh, let’s go!” And she’ll be like, “Really?” [crosstalk 00:37:32] and you’re like, “Ugh, okay.” Or I would give you a choice, just one of those.
Tamsin: Well, to be honest, no, what you’re saying about timing, I have sensed you need to get yourself out there now, you need to say your testimony, which is funnily enough, really layered with lots of different bits. And as long as I keep humble and as a servant in submission to God, and do it with the right heart, he will honor that. And it’s all about his glory at the end of the day. And if it’s to help somebody else, well, I need to get out of my comfort zone and out of my little boat and be more risk-taking, which doesn’t sound like it is, but it’s all steps moving forward, and I trust that as time goes on, that I can help bless more people. We’ll have to do another video Mika, of the more recent events with the husband falling down the stairs.
Mimika: Oh my gosh. Oh, yes. That was just so scary. Now that you mentioned it, you’re going to have to explain yourself, because we’re going to be like, “What the heck happened there?”
Tamsin: Well basically, my husband fell down the stairs early one morning on a weekend, and I thought, “He’s fallen down and broken a leg,” and he hadn’t. He basically knocked himself out, but he was conscious, but his eyes were glazed over and he was making some really strange sounds. And this fear bubbled up for me and I could tell it was in the flesh. And I could sense almost like a spirit of death around me. And I thought, “No, not having this,” and I got almost this righteous anger and thought, “No, I’m not having him dying on the stairs like this,” because he stopped breathing actually, and he’s face went pale.
Mimika: Oh, scary.
Tamsin: So I just did what came instinctively was just to say, “In Jesus’ name, be healed.” And started to pray in tongues. And all of a sudden, color came back in his skin and he sat up and he was like, “What’s going on?” And I had to explain it to him, and I just walked around that for days like, “What just happened there? What just happened? Wow. Thank you father. Thank you father, God.” And just digressing a bit, because of being in South Africa and growing up there, we are very aware of the spiritual side of things. So the demonics of the voodoo and the witchcraft.
So all that I’d learnt as a child, and even when I came to God again after seeing demons, that kind of shook me. Every time things happen now, I know that it’s all been this equipping me to get to the stage of being like, “Nope, I know what to do. I’m a child of God. Greater is he that’s in me, that’s he that’s in the world. I know it’s not, John’s time to go. This is not happening,” and I take back the authority and to rise above it in strength, in the Holy Spirit, to do what he calls us to do. And it’s not complicated. It’s quite simple.
Mimika: That tells us you’re a spiritual slayer, and we all have those equipments given to us. It’s a matter what I think is so crucial, what you’ve said is, you know your identity as a child of God, that your rights and authority are to declare life and you don’t have to just allow things to happen and negativity and even threats of death come our way we can take authority when we are aligned with God and know that we have Jesus as our advocate and taking authority using his name.
That’s another amazing testimony that just shows the resilience of not being willing to up faced with certain death, and also she’s gone through quite a few instances. I think you were four years old, choking on an orange peel and your lips been blue, I screamed my head off because you weren’t breathing, dad came running, grabbed, you started shaking you upside down, but that wasn’t the only time, we’ve had several other instances as well, where you felt like you’ve been taken out.
Tamsin: I just felt like Satan’s just constantly been trying to take me out all my life, and I know that he’s tried, but he’s just really useless, isn’t he?
Mimika: Really.
Tamsin: And I found what’s really helped me more practically speaking, because I’m quite a practical person, is if I can’t be bothered… I mean, let’s be honest, we’re not always going to feel like reading the Bible and yes, we can get an audio Bible and listen to it, sometimes just reading out decrees or just listening to praise and worship music completely changes the atmosphere, and that sometimes is enough. And also praying in tongues just to lift myself and lift how I’m feeling out of that situation.
And to have all these tools that are there available to help us when we start to feel that sense of flesh and of Satan trying to wind us up with thoughts and making us feel down, and we’ve got all these tools available, and we live in the day and age where we’ve got, “Hey, Alexa, play music.” It’s just great that we’ve got everything around us that can help build us up, and help us in fellowship with one another as well to grow.
Mimika: So we have the authority, we have the tools, we just need to enact them, take them up and say, “This is what my rights are. And I am going to work to keep pursuing that,” so that’s very encouraging. I really appreciate you sharing, and so excited to see what else the Lord’s going to do in your life, because this is just the first of many testimonies that you’ll be sharing I know. And as I said, there is a book in you, whether you like it or not, because we will get one out of you. That’s me being the bossy older sister. And she’s like, “Okay,” but yes, we know that for sure. But if you had to wrap it up in a takeaway tip, what would you say you would want people to remember from your whole story?
Tamsin: I suppose never give up, and to remember who you are in Christ, and don’t take life so seriously I think as well. And…
Mimika: Just enjoying the journey, right?
Tamsin: Enjoy the journey, and don’t make it complicated. But the answer is always there, you just have to look for it. And yeah, I think the more you push closer to God, the more he pushes closer to you, and you can’t deny the word of God, and praise and worship. Those are the two key things that helped me a lot to meditate on focusing my mind on the goodness and the truth.
Mimika: Yeah. Just keeping the inputs good, which is why I always believe in the power of stories and books that somebody could be like you laying in bed, the only thing you could do is listen to something or read something. So we all have something good to share that’s going to be valuable to someone else, so I’m going to say I appreciate you being on the show. I know we could talk forever and there’s so many stories, but before we round up, tell everybody what’s the good place they I can find you online if they want to connect.
Tamsin: There’s a website, I suppose, tamsinwroot.com, there’s Instagram and Facebook, just with my name.
Mimika: She’s still a little green behind the ears with social, people, just be kind to her. We’re getting her there, I’m encouraging her to put herself more out there, but you follow her on Instagram. And we will provide all these links in the show notes, so no matter what platform you’re watching or listening on, make sure to scroll below, click that little show notes button, and it’ll take you to all the things that you need to know so you can connect to Tamsin and hear more about that. But I will say, if you’ve enjoyed today’s show, please make sure to share it with your friends. You never know who might need to hear Tamsin’s story just for that specific moment in their day. So make sure to do that, and then leave your comments, any aha moments, any revelations, we would love to connect with you, so make sure to add your comments below, especially on the video format on our website.
And if you want more freebies that I only share with my newsletter community, go to mimikacooney.com. It’s M-I-M-I-K-A-C-O-O-N-E-Y.com, and we’ve got great downloads there from prayer guides, as well as 12 Secrets to Personal Growth, I have a lot of resources there. And we would love you to share this, so make sure to go and rate and review on whichever platform you prefer, and we would love to connect with you future. So I’m going to say thanks Tam to connecting me, you’re ready for dinner, and I’m ready for lunch, but we could connect and have your cup of tea.
Tamsin: I’m actually a coffee drinker because I’m half Greek, remember?
Mimika: Yes, of course coffee. That’s what we do. Well I’ll be so excited. Look, I had to show you, I found a gluten-free Panettone Cake. I’m excited because things I love to eat that I haven’t been able to, so I’m so excited. I’m going to have my cup of tea with my cookies and my Panettone, so anyways. Well, thanks again for joining us, everyone, until next time. Take care.
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