Opposition

Episode title: "Opposition"

• Opening: The Announcer introduces the Equipped podcast, describing a world getting darker and a spiritual war, and hands off to hosts Michael and Teresa Blaise. Teresa welcomes listeners. Hosts identify themselves: Teresa Blaise, Michael Blaise, and Val (Valarie) Rocha. A brief playful exchange follows among Teresa, Michael, and Val.
• Topic introduction: Teresa states the episode's focus—opposition—framing opposition as a sign that someone is doing what God intends. She explains the episode will use an example from their own experience and then discuss how to recognize and fight opposition. Michael offers an analogy (“live fish swim upstream; dead fish go downstream”) to support the idea that active Christians will face resistance.
• Personal examples / backstory:
• Teresa explains they run multiple projects (the Equipped podcast, Kadosh Media, book publishing, workshops) and started workshops to attract clients.
• First workshop: Michael recounts encountering a heckler who typed obscene messages in the chat (in Polish), which they translated and then removed from the event.
• Second workshop: A technical error on Eventbrite created two back-to-back events, forcing them to run two abbreviated workshops on short notice. Teresa also reveals she was dealing with brain fog and seizure-like activity while preparing and performing the workshops.
• Interpretation of opposition: Teresa and Michael assert that opposition and attacks indicate being “over the target” in spiritual terms. They say the enemy attacks those who are active in their calling; being opposed signals the enemy’s response to God’s work. Val adds that opposition is inevitable (“it’s not if you go through, it’s when”), and stresses the need to fight the spirit behind an adversary rather than the person, recommending vigilance in prayer and a spiritually and mentally conditioned posture.
• Spiritual warfare and armor:
• Val emphasizes that spiritual battles start in the spirit realm and manifest naturally, and that believers must use prayer, scripture, fasting (if necessary), and daily spiritual training to respond.
• Michael and Teresa stress the importance of putting on the armor of God daily and actively “praying on” the armor rather than assuming it’s passively worn. They warn that many Christians are unprepared on the battlefield and suffer as a result.
• Val gives an extended metaphor comparing biblical-era Roman armor to the spiritual armor—each piece has a purpose (shield of faith, headgear, shoes with spikes, blades)—arguing the original audience would have understood the seriousness and functionality of the armor imagery.
• Practical guidance:
• Steps repeated and emphasized: recognize opposition, “armor up,” stay in the Word, pray without ceasing, maintain a correct heart posture (forgiveness), and listen to God’s guidance.
• Val highlights the Lord’s Prayer as Jesus’s life-in-a-nutshell and stresses starting petitions from a right heart posture.
• They recommend discernment, standing firm in faith, and trusting God as a strategist who never loses, with the reminder that “greater is he that is in us than he that is in the world.”
• Teresa and Michael acknowledge human weakness: some struggles are due to the flesh, some to the enemy; God provides mercy, forgiveness, and a “way of escape” per scripture.
• Cultural/spiritual context and deception: Teresa mentions contemporary phenomena (UFOs, alien claims) as potentially spiritual/deceptive matters and warns that believers need discernment to avoid deception. She references PID Radio by Derek and Sherry Gilbert as a podcast that looks behind headlines to see theological/spiritual moves.
• Personal reflections: Michael expresses anger at seeing the enemy attack people (mentions a friend in the hospital). Teresa shares how her neurological symptoms have affected relationships and work but frames enduring opposition as part of the fight, preferring to be an active combatant rather than a casualty.
• Announcements and resources:
• Val promotes a live event, “Kneeling at the Throne, a prayer experience,” to teach prayer strategies using content from her devotional Kneeling at the Throne. She gives the date (Saturday, February 28), time (11:00–12:30), location (Winter Street Northeast, Salem, Oregon), and a registration link (divinefiveonefive.com/experience) as provided on the episode. She mentions books, signings, giveaways, and food.
• Teresa mentions her upcoming book Protect It: A Story of Survival, Faith, and Redemption, and gives a site (protectedbook.com) for updates.
• Michael and Teresa note their recurring workshop (“the cannot fail formula for a God-given formula for having a prosperous business and ministry”), held about every two weeks, and give a link (kadoshmedia.com/workshop) for more information. They also note their broader work with Kadosh Media.
• Final exhortations and sign-off:
• Teresa’s last charge: if you’re on the battlefield, stop going out naked—pull the arrows from your back and armor up.
• Michael’s closing line adjusts their motto to: “word up, pray up, armor up, and war strong.”
• Val: “Listen to the decree of the king. As the king decrees, so it is.”
• Closing: Hosts identify themselves (Theresa Blaise, Michael Blaise, Val Rocha). The Announcer closes by directing listeners to the equippedpodcast.com for past shows.

End of episode.

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