I was going to drop off Agbenu and Ofu in school and we were listening to Winans Phase 2. As soon as “It’s Alright (Send Me)” began to play, I rocked my head and sang along.

Agbenu: “You like this song, daddy.”

Me: “Yes, I do. Do you see the title?”

Agbenu: “Mmhmm… It’s Alright (Send Me).”

Me: “Yep! They’re are saying if God needs someone to go and do His will, He can send them.”

Agbenu: “Oh… Just like God sent Jonah to Nineveh but he refused. Then he was thrown into the sea and he was swallowed by a big fish.”

Ofu: “A whale?”

Agbenu: “No, the bible doesn’t say a whale, it says, a big fish. Besides, whales are mammals, and not fishes so, it couldn’t have been a whale since the bible says a big fish.”

Ofu: “Also, I don’t think it was a shark because a shark would have bitten him.”

Me: “I like the discussion. Yes, the bible just said it was a big fish. We don’t know it was a whale or not.”

Agbenu: “Yes, and it took Jonah to Nineveh and spat him out on the shore.”

Me: “Exactly! So, wouldn’t it have been easier if Jonah just obeyed God and followed His instruction to go to Nineveh, and do what he was told?”

Agbenu: “Mmhmm.”

Ofu was silent.

Me: “Ofu, what do you think?”

Ofu: “Yeah.”

Me: “Good. Me too. Can you imagine how scared Jonah was? What about his drowning before he was swallowed by the big fish? Can you imagine how hot the stomach of the big fish was? Think about all the yucky stuff from inside the fish that was all over his body: his eyes, his nose, his ears, his mouth…”

Agbenu: “Ew!!!”

Ofu: “That’s bad.”

Agbenu: “He must have been very scared.”

Me: “Yeah. So, it’s better for us to obey and follow instructions when we are assigned a task. The main lesson is that if God wants to use us to do His will, He will. Sometimes, He will use someone else if we refuse but if He insists on us, He’ll get us to do it. So, the choice is ours to do it obediently or do it the hard way like Jonah. The hard way is very painful. The bottom line is that God’s will must be done. I hope we will always make good choices and be obedient to Him. Got that?”

Agbenu and Ofu: “Yes, daddy.”

Me: “Good, and that’s what the song is encouraging us to do. I also like the beat.”

Now, that was a seize-the-moment opportunity presented by Winans Phase 2’s “It’s Alright (Send Me).” In the post “Dad, Is Sex The Same As…?” I was faced with a similar circumstance. It made me question what we are listening to or what we are exposing ourselves to that may influence our children in either way.

For me, I hope that whatever I’m exposing my children to will influence them positively and give us opportunities to engage in discussions that will reiterate our shared values.

So, It’s Alright (Send Me), Lord.

• 1/23/20