My 2-year-old has discovered Bad Guys and Monsters. Those invisible beings are great fun to shoot at and chase during the day but lurk in dark corners of the bedroom and keep little people awake at bedtime.

He cried for almost an hour last night yelling “Wait, Daddy!” and “Cuddle, Mommy!” That resulted in Bad Guys and Monsters being banned from everyday play and Hunting All the Animals to become our new focus.

But last night, when we were cuddling and singing and praying, a verse came to my mind and I paraphrased it for him,

Be strong and brave, for God is with you. Joshua 1:9

I’d never even seen the word “brave” used in that verse in any translation (usually it’s translated “courageous”) but I knew he would understand it that way.

Well, after collapsing at the end of that ordeal, I was telling Nate how Charles has spent the whole week in crisis mode. The tiniest things cause major meltdowns. Unfortunately, he gets that from me, so when he freaks out, I tend to snap, too, and we have a major debacle on our hands. So we spend some days in a vicious cycle of freaking out and apologizing and calming down. Frankly, it’s exhausting.

So when I opened my Bible before bed I turned to Joshua to read the verse I paraphrased for my boy. I’m reading a new translation to me and it said:

Be strong and brave! Don’t be afraid and don’t panic, for I, the Lord your God, am with you in all you do. Joshua 1:9 NET

We not only needed the “be brave” part of that verse, but we desperately needed the “don’t panic” part, too. I panic when I feel out of control. But I’m not in control – God is. And he’s with me in everything I do, so I have no reason to panic.

So this morning we implemented a new phrase when the freaking out began, “It’s gonna be okay.” That phrase energized me all day long.

Toddler sobbing when PBS shows got turned off for the morning and baby screeching to be held while I tried to wash some dishes. “It’s gonna be okay.”

Toddler begs for chocolate milk. Toddler begs Mommy to play with him. Toddler begs for a friend to come over. Toddler begs for the TV to be turned on. “It’s gonna be okay.”

“Son, please obey Mommy,” for the 457th time in the past hour. “It’s gonna be okay.”

Just recognizing the truth in that verse and applying it made all the difference in our day.

The Word of God is real. It changes everything.

Make sure you are very strong and brave! Carefully obey all the law my servant Moses charged you to keep! Do not swerve from it to the right or to the left, so that you may be successful in all you do. Joshua 1:7 NET