The film version of Where the Wild Things Are is not at all what I was expecting. It was far deeper... and far darker. Here are a few post-film reflections.

1. We are all "sons of dysfunction" and have beastly/sinful tendencies.

2. Our beast within that expresses itself in various personality and temperament quirks, which inevitably create interpersonal conflict.

3. Nevertheless, we long for a community where we can be real and accepted at the same time- personal funkiness and all.

4. In a word, we long to be... happy.

5. And we long for a "sovereign king" who can fulfill that dream of happieness in the context of genuine community.

6. We try to kill kings (whether literally or figuratively) who do not live up to our expectations.

7. The fact is that no mere beast can fulfill that dream. He must come from another world, express unexpected kindness, so that we can learn that it is love expressed toward the unlovely and beastly that is the power that fulfills the dream and changes people deeply.

8. Enter Jesus, who came to the land "where the wild things are"... reveal the cross, where the king, out of love, allowed himself to be killed for the beasts... and gather the church, a community of loved beasts whose lives sing the tones of grace in worship of the one who has loved them with the ultimate love.