Mio in the Land of Faraway

Date

15.03.25

Mio in the Land of Faraway (1987)

Rated PG

Directed by: Vladimir Grammatikov Production Company – Nordisk Tonefilm International

Starring: Nicholas Pickard, Christian Bale, Timothy Bottoms, Christopher Lee, Susannah York

A young boy leaves on a fantastical quest to find his father, the King of the Land of Faraway.

Opening Thoughts

Do you ever think about what it will be like when we see God for the first time, face to face? I do…a lot. Picture this with me, if you will:

You are cold, weary, and feel utterly alone as you sit on a park bench in the darkness of a winter’s eve. The wind steals your breath and bites against your cheeks, making them sting. You wrap your arms around yourself and squeeze tightly, not because you are trying to keep warm, but because you long to feel the warmth of another’s embrace. The ache of loneliness gnaws at you far worse than the cold ever could. A yearning for something you can’t quite identify pulls at your heart, but you have no way to satisfy it, so it just thuds inside of you, a dull reminder of your hopelessness. You want to just sit here forever until you fade away to nothing, but the one blessing of that yearning is that you know that somewhere, somehow, there must be something…Someone who can satisfy it. That slim hope is the only thing that keeps you going.

Then something happens. You are offered a chance to find that satisfaction, to be brought to it. Hope widens, brightens. Could this be? You have hoped and been hurt so many times in the past, so you hesitate. But is the night growing lighter? Yes! The darkness is fading, fading, and a new dawn is arising. You make the decision. You take hold of the chance. You will do it, even if it all comes to nothing. Because you have experience with disappointment, yes, you know it well. But now it’s time to try something new.

You land in a place altogether different from any you have known before. Hard streets of stone are no more, now lush grasses soothe your tired feet. The air here is warm, and surrounds you with a wonderful fragrance. You shed your outer garments, not long ago they weren’t enough, now they feel like too much. Instead of the repetitive dull thud of machinery there is the rich sound of birdsong, and some other melody beyond that of bird-make. You turn slowly in a circle. Light is everywhere, and you try to take it all in. Everything is so unfamiliar yet somehow wonderfully reminiscent of something you’ve forgotten long ago…

Then you see Him. Just a speck at first, a tall figure standing against the sun. He is so backlit by brilliance, you can’t make out his features, but somehow, somehow you know. You break into a run, and so does he, striding towards you with joyful purpose. You slip and slide on the grass, you almost fall in your haste. You must get to Him, you must! He is still so far away but every step brings you closer. You run like you’ve never run before, because nothing on earth ever drove you like the longing and desperation you feel now. Closer. You can see His face now, and He’s smiling. Smiling at you. Just a few more steps…

Then He is there. pulling you up to His chest, holding you as you jump up in His arms like a little child. His arms surround you, and it’s just like you’ve always imagined. No, it is better, because you never imagined just how strong His arms would feel as they hold you, nor how protected and utterly safe they would make you feel. You never knew anything could smell so sweet as the scent of Him, and no sound ever soothed you like the beat of His heart does. He holds you tight, and even as your heart beats wildly with a joy and excitement you’ve never known, you are at rest, finally, because you…are…satisfied.

But it’s not quite over yet. His breath tickles your ear as you hear Him say, (is that a slight break in His voice??) “My child. My child.”

I’m so very happy to share what my Father, the King, showed me in Mio in the Land of Faraway. I hope that you, too, will come away with a better idea of how He thinks of you, His child.

SPOILERS For Mio in the Land of Faraway here!

Bosse is a young boy living in Stockholm, Sweden with his foster parents, who took him in when his mother died in childbirth. They are often unkind to him, disparaging and scolding him, but he is able to play with his friend Benke from time to time. One night, after being tormented by bullies, he arrives home late for yet another scolding from his “Aunt” Edna. He weeps as he listens to her describe him as evil and worthless, so he decides to run away and look for his father. A friendly shopkeeper gives him an apple and asks him to mail a postcard for her addressed to the “King of the Land of Faraway.” Bosse mails the card and starts to eat the apple when it turns to gold in his hand! Dropping it, he notices a bottle with a cloudy substance within. Opening the bottle, he releases a genie, who declares he is the servant of the King, who has been searching for Bosse and sent the genie to find him. The genie takes Bosse on a magical journey to the Land of Faraway.

When Bosse arrives, he is greeted by the King, whom he learns is his father. The King tells Bosse his real name is Mio, and that he has been searching for him his whole life, but now they will always be together. A young boy arrives and greets Mio. The boy resembles Mio’s friend Benke, but this boy is named Jum Jum. Jum Jum shows Mio all around the Land of Faraway, introducing him to many new friends. Mio learns that many of the land’s children have been kidnapped by the evil knight Kato, and the thought frightens him, but he is soothed by his father’s love.

One day, Mio asks his father for permission for him and Jum Jum to visit the Forest of Mysteries on his horse, Miramis. His father grants permission, but seems sad. Mio and Jum Jum meet the Weaver of Dreams in the forest, who tells them of her daughter whom Kato stole from her. Mio decides that even though he is afraid, he must fight Kato and rescue the children, and he and Jum Jum set out together.

They dodge Kato’s spies and meet Eno, who sends them on to the Forger of Swords, who gives Mio a special sword that can cut through stone, because Kato has a heart of stone. Mio and Jum Jum make it to Kato’s castle, but are captured by the guards and brought before Kato. Kato takes Mio’s sword and throws it into the lake, and then banishes them to the tower to die of starvation. While in the tower, Mio discovers that the Weaver has altered his cloak, and when turned inside out, it renders him invisible. The birds which surround the castle (which are really the missing children, enchanted) retrieve Mio’s sword and bring it to him. Mio escapes the tower, promising to come back for Jum Jum, and goes to confront Kato. They fight, and Mio slays him.

The curse over the land is broken, and all the birds transform back into children. Mio and Jum Jum lead them home to the Land of Faraway, where all the children are reunited with their parents, and Mio finds his father, the King, waiting for him in the garden, where they joyfully embrace.

So What Did God Show Me?

–“You never listen, do you? You don’t pay any attention to what you’re told!” My heart hurts for Bosse in the beginning of this movie. I can relate so much to what he was going through. Bosse is a good boy, and tries to be obedient, but his mistakes aren’t tolerated very well, and he seems to be regarded as more of a burden than a part of the family. I was prone to daydreaming when I was a child and was often chastised by parents and teachers alike for not paying attention. I remember being so frustrated with myself, feeling like I was just so stupid. That I was an awful, awful failure, and I was never going to be any good at anything in life. It always felt like I was doing everything wrong and that I made a mess of everything I did. Why couldn’t I do it right the first time? Why couldn’t I just listen?

Fast forward to six months ago, when I was diagnosed with ADHD. I was surprised, but another part of me was so relieved. This made so much sense!! I wasn’t broken or flawed beyond repair, I just have a super special brain! Coming to terms with this diagnosis really helped me understand myself and the way I think and process things better. But even more so, I was reminded that even back when I thought I was “broken,” that my Father the King never saw me that way…He just saw me as His child that He loved and delighted in. And that hasn’t changed, no matter what I do or forget to do.

-I can’t imagine what it must’ve been like for Bosse to lie there and listen to his foster parents, the people who were supposed to be caring for him, talking such terrible trash about him. Now, my mom and I had some arguments, some real doozies. She was great about telling me how to do things “better” and what I needed to improve about myself. But I know she loved me, and I loved her, and she never called me evil or worthless. Anything she said to me was out of genuine care and concern, trying to shepherd her wayward, unhappy daughter along the sometimes very twisty turns of life as best she could. However, like Bosse, my mom did disparage my father in front of me, many times. I know she would get frustrated with him, and I knew firsthand that my father wasn’t a perfect man. Divorce is hard for everyone involved, and doesn’t always fix all the problems either. But what would really bother me was when my mother would complain how much like my father I was, because after listening to her bash my father, how was I supposed to take that? It was years before I could tell her how much that bothered me.

I would wish that you never have to hear cruel things said about you, but I know unfortunately that’s almost impossible to avoid in this day and age. Between the bullies and not feeling like I was living up to my mother’s expectations of me, I taught myself how to bend over backwards as a people pleaser, working myself to exhaustion to make sure people liked me. And it still didn’t work!! Imagine that? (Funny side note: I remember telling a friend that I wished I was like Beth in Little Women or Melanie in Gone With the Wind, that they were so sweet and wonderful that everyone loved them, to which my friend cracked, “Yeah, and they both DIED.”)

Take heart, Child of the King. You are not what others say you are. Your Father the King calls you his precious son, his darling daughter, and his opinion is the only one that counts. Really.

-“The Land of Faraway…I wish I was there.” At this point, all Bosse has is a picture of a castle on a postcard and the name of a mysterious place, the Land of Faraway. Yet, somehow, this place calls to him. He wants to go to Faraway before he even knows what it is or anything about it. His soul just longs for this place, a haven, someplace so different from everything he has ever known.

Can’t you feel it too? “The Land of Faraway.” There’s a German word, “fernweh,” which we don’t have a word for in English, but roughly translates to “farsickness,” or a feeling of homesickness for a place you’ve never been. I know this feeling well. Sometimes I get glimpses of that place, our True Home, in nature, or my imagination, but those are just pale shadows of what True Home is really like. CS Lewis called it “sehnsucht,” or a deep yearning for something beyond our day to day lives, suggesting we are, at our core, made for another world and that anything we enjoy now is only a dim reflection of the ultimate reality. Whether you call it Faraway, True Home, or a name all your own, I think every human heart contains this longing in some measure.

-“You are the one he has been seeking for so many years.” Oh, imagine what must’ve been in Bosse’s heart at the genie’s words. For the first time in his life, he knows he is wanted. He has not been abandoned. He is valued. He is being sought after, fought for. It’s everything he’s always dreamed about his father, and everything that his foster parents never showed him.

I found out recently that Astrid Lindgren, the author of the book Mio, min Mio which the movie is based on, had a son out of wedlock. Her son was in foster care in Denmark for the first four years of his life, and she rarely saw him during that time. Eventually she was able to take full custody of him again, but I can hear the echoes of her heart in this story. “Mio, my Mio…” How her arms must have ached to hold her son, how her heart must have yearned for him!

This is you too. Your Father the King has been after your heart your entire life. He wants you, and sent His Son to rescue you. His heart longs for you, to be with you and to lavish His unending love on you! He values you above all else and will never rest until the two of you are together again.

-“Mio? But my name is Bosse.” Bosse is reunited with his father, the King of the Land of Faraway. He learns that not only is he a prince, but that his real name is Mio. His father tells him how every night, as he lay in bed awake, his heart aching to be with his son, he would whisper to himself, “Mio…my Mio.” Mio responds that “All that about being called Bosse was wrong. It was all wrong! I knew it!” to which his father agrees, “Yes. Everything’s been put right now.”

The Swedish name “Bosse” means “to dwell.” When Mio was living his life in Sweden as “Bosse,” he was dwelling, stuck where he was…trapped in a loveless family, with no hope of any kind of a happy life. But the name “Mio” translates to “Mine.” What a rich name! Mio’s very identity is reflected in his name now! He belongs to his father, he is his son.

It is the same with you, Child of the King. Your Father the King calls you His own. No matter your situation or circumstance in life, you have a Father that loves you. You belong to Him, are bound together with an unbreakable bond. This is something you can trust in, rest in, have assurance of. You are loved. You are His. Picture Him, right now, speaking to you, calling you by name, just like the King did for Mio. “Sarah, my Sarah.”

-“My father took me by the hand, and it felt so good to feel my hand in his. Aunt Edna and Uncle Sixten had never done that.” I love the freedom of affection Mio has with his father. Now that he knows he is loved completely, he feels free to walk hand in hand with his father, or even jump into his arms to be held close.

Touch, especially affectionate, tender, healthy touching is invaluable. Scientists have discovered that healthy touch reduces stress and anxiety, lowers blood pressure, relieves pain, and boosts your immune system. Touch improves mood and reduces anxiety and depression. Touch promotes love and affection, builds trust and intimacy, and increases empathy and compassion. Humans were not made to survive or thrive without healthy, loving touch.

I’m a very affectionate person, and I just love hugs, more than anything else. My friend Troy gives me my favorite kind of hugs. He’s tall and I’m short, so when we hug his arms go around my head and I can’t see anything, but my head rests next to his chest and I can feel his heart beating and I feel very, very safe. Or sometimes when he’s really excited he’ll get me in kind of a half-headlock and squeeze me under his armpit.😆 I have another friend who used to greet me by handing me her baby, because she knew how much I like baby snuggles.

I think it can be hard to find that kind of freedom in affection with people, because in order to have that freedom, there needs to be a sincere amount of trust between the people. So when I do find it, I treasure it. I hope you have people in your life that you can be affectionate with…it’s not only life giving but life saving. And touching my Father the King’s face and feeling His arms around me, for real, is what I dream of every day. ❤️

-Because he knows his father loves him no matter what, Mio feels safe expressing to his father the fact that he’s afraid of riding his horse Miramis for the first time. Mio, being from the city, has never ridden before, and expresses concern about not knowing what he is doing. His father immediately encourages him, telling him confidently, “You can do anything you want, as long as you have enough courage in your heart to do it.” The King knows his son and what he is able to do better than Mio did himself, and therefore could speak with assurance.

Jesus says in Mark 9:23 that “Anything is possible if a person believes.” As a Child of the King, this applies to you too. Now granted, this isn’t a free pass to do anything we want, rather it’s a reminder that when we face an obstacle in our lives that looks insurmountable and scary, we don’t have to be afraid, because we “can do all things through Christ who strengthens” us. (Philippians 4:13)

-In the movie, Yuri’s sister gives Mio and Jum Jum some of the “Bread to Satisfy All Hunger.” What tickles me is that in the original book, some translations called this “Our Daily Bread.” I just think that’s really cool. In John 6:35, Jesus says, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” Jesus truly satisfies and is our Bread to Satisfy All Hunger.

-Inspired by the tale he has heard at the Whispering Well, Mio approaches his father to ask permission to ride with Jum Jum through the Forest of Mysteries. His father looks at him a moment, sorrow evident in his face. Quietly he whispers, “So soon?” When Mio begs him, he says again, sadly, “So soon…”

Mio hesitates, sensing his father’s mood. Maybe he should stay. Maybe his father will miss him too much if he goes. They only have just been reunited, after all. So he ventures, “Do you want me to stay here with you, instead?” His father immediately answers, “No, Mio. You go, now. Go, go!”

(Ok, I just want to insert here that people talk about Christian Bale and Christopher Lee in this movie, but Timothy Bottoms just SLAYS as the King. I want Timothy Bottoms as my movie father-king!)

Mio is about to set off on what he thinks is a simple overnight adventure with his best friend. He heard a story from the Well about a prince exploring the Forest of Mysteries and he thinks it sounds like a capital idea. So why is his father so sad? Because his father knows that Mio is heading into more than a moonlit forest. Mio is heading into danger. He will be cold, and hungry, and afraid, and face the threat of death. The king, who has just gotten back his son, now faces the possibility of losing him forever. But still he lets him go, tells him to go, because he knows that Mio has been called, that he has a quest before him, and a task to complete that only he, as the king’s son, can do.

It made me think of God, sending out His son, Jesus, to do the task appointed to him, the task that only he, as our Father the King’s Son, could do. God knew what he was sending His son into, and unlike Mio, Jesus knew exactly what he was going to be up against and what was going to be required of him. I know God doesn’t worry, but He still must’ve agonized over what His son had to endure. But like Mio’s father, our Father the King longed for us, and missed being with us so terribly. He couldn’t stand being apart from us, and knew that the only way for us to be reunited was to send Jesus to rescue us. So like Mio’s father, our Father the King sent out his only son to save us and bring us home to him, so that we could all be together.

-Oh, the scene where Mio realizes the task set before him. When he fully understands that it’s not just a story, that it’s about him. That it’s up to him to deal with Kato, and rescue all the children he has stolen from their parents. At first Mio can’t believe it. There’s a prophecy? About him? And everyone has known all along? Jum Jum explains:

“Everyone knows.”

“And my father, the King?”

“…He’s always known.”

“And he wants me to go?”

“Yes.”

“I’m frightened, Jum Jum. Why me?”

“Only a male child of royal blood can fight the evil knight. Only a king’s son.”

Then there is a deleted/expanded version of the scene which shows more of the emotion he is feeling:

“But I’m afraid! And did my father send me away to the Land Outside, despite the danger, knowing that I may die?”

“Yes.”

“But I don’t want to! No, I can’t! Please. I’m very afraid. What if Kato kills me? I don’t want to!”

“You must. And you can do it, because your heart is fearless and your thoughts are noble. That was predicted thousands and thousands of years ago, you can’t change that.”

(Insert: I love how Jum Jum believes in Mio 1000% that he can accomplish this. What a Sam. ♥️)

Mio is experiencing an odd conflux of emotion here. He has decided he has to try and face Kato, and help all of the kidnapped children if he can. But once he is told that it was prophesied that he would be their savior thousands of years ago, and that everyone expected it of him, he becomes terribly afraid, and why wouldn’t he? That’s a lot to live up to, especially at only nine years old!

But what really bothers Mio is that his father, who professes to love him dearly, sent him off willingly, knowing he will face terrible danger and possible death. Does it mean that his father doesn’t care about him, doesn’t care whether he lives or dies? I imagine Mio’s mind was going to very dark places at this point. Is that why my father was searching for me and so anxious to find me? So that he could send me off to be butchered? I’m just a little boy! How could he know all of this and not tell me? I thought he loved me! Maybe he doesn’t care about me at all! As Christians, it can be very easy for us to find ourselves thinking those same thoughts.

So many people do not know that our Father the King is also their Father. They don’t know of His love. The enemy has stolen them away from Him and enchanted them with lies. This enemy is powerful, clever, and strong. He is dangerous, and wants to steal us, kill us, and utterly destroy us. I’m willing to bet that if you have been restored to our Father the King and now bear His royal family name, it’s because one of His royal children helped break the enemy’s enchantment over you and restore you to Him.

Our Father the King celebrates when we come to Him and He rejoices when the Holy Spirit compels our hearts to carry on His work, to seek out with compassion those that are lost and help restore them to His love. The priceless freedom we experience in Christ is something we want everyone to know, to know His sweet love and to have that life more abundant. (If this is something that piques your curiosity and you’d like to know more about it, please, reach out to me on my contact page and let me know if you have any questions!)

But why would our Father the King send us out to face such a dangerous enemy? Because we are not the only children in His royal family. There are many, many others that His heart is yearning and aching to be restored to Him. Other names that He whispers over and over in the night, other hearts He longs to embrace and hold close. “My Child…” And He needs our help.

But why us? We’re not Kings. We’re not mighty or all powerful. How can we even think of confronting the dark evil of the enemy? Because we do have these things: our Father the King’s belief in us, and the knowledge of our identity in Him. Mio’s father told him earlier, “You can do anything you want, as long as you have enough courage in your heart to do it.” Again, we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. All we need is to be willing, and that willingness is born out of love for our Father the King and our trust that He is good and has good things for us.

And He does not send us out alone, no. Even Mio was accompanied by a single friend, his father knew he would not face the danger alone. We are often accompanied by other royal children of our Father the King, our brothers and sisters in Christ, but even if we find ourselves “alone,” we are never truly alone, for the Holy Spirit is always with us.

So yes, it can be very scary, knowing the task set before us and the many traps the enemy has set to try and enchant us once again. You may feel overwhelmed and afraid, and wish you could run home to safety, like Mio. But our Father the King wants us to go, even though it will be difficult and sometimes dangerous. You can hear the sorrow in His voice when He speaks of those He loves, and how He longs to restore them as His children, to make everything “right” again. How can you stand by when He is hurting, and His children are suffering?

When you love someone, you are willing to do all manner of things for them, from supporting and encouraging them, to fighting and dying for them. Not even kidding, I’d take a bullet for my friends, and they’re just walking, talking, idiot meat sacks who drink coffee by the bucket and get a big kick out of making a bunch of pixels fight each other next to our Father the King. I love my Him, and I long to see His other children restored to Him. Long ago, someone broke the enchantment over me, and I was able to discover that I am not who I thought I was, but rather a child of my Father the King, a princess, His child that He calls by name. Everything’s been “put right” for me. So I am more than willing to go into the Land Outside in search of other captive children and bring them home.

I was reading an article about the book version, Mio, My Mio, by Elizabeth Hansen at Plough.com magazine, and she explains it all of this much simpler and with less words than I just did 😉It’s an amazing article and just nails all the reasons I love this movie and the book…I highly recommend you give it a read.

-As they make their way through the Dead Forest, Mio and Jum Jum meet Eno, who is starving to death. Despite the fact they are being pursued by the enemy, they decide to stop and show mercy to Eno. It could be dangerous, for they have no reason to trust this stranger in enemy territory. But they still give him their Bread That Satisfies All Hunger even though it leaves them with none. They are rewarded for showing mercy because Eno is able to tell them about the Forger of Swords, where they can find a sword that will be able to destroy Kato. If they had not stopped, but ignored Eno and went on their way, who knows what would’ve happened? Sometimes our Father the King puts people or situations in our way to guide us along the next steps in our journey. Sometimes something we see as a hindrance can really turn out to be a blessing, depending on how we react to it!

-Mio and Jum Jum have such a wonderful friendship, it reminds me of Sam and Frodo in Lord of the Rings. Mio is prepared to go and undertake his dangerous quest on his own, but Jum Jum will not let him face the dangers alone. When Mio first invites him along, Jum Jum is so ready to go, he’s all, “Do I want to come?? Are you kidding? I have cloaks for us, and bread all ready, let’s do this!!” He is willing to accompany Mio before Mio realizes the intensity of the quest before him, even though Jum Jum knows from the beginning what they are being called to. He is protective of Mio, guarding him from potential threats along the journey. When they are eventually captured by Kato’s spies, Kato threatens to rip out their hearts with his iron claw, and replace them with hearts of stone. Jum Jum responds by placing his body in front of Mio’s, shielding him from Kato. He is faithful even unto death.

But it’s more than that. As a true friend, Jum Jum will not let Mio quit when things get real and he gets scared. He reminds Mio of his identity as the son of the King. He reminds him that he has a job to do, that only he is able to accomplish. He doesn’t ridicule or scorn Mio for showing weakness and fear, but rather comforts Mio when he’s sad.

In return, Mio deeply appreciates Jum Jum’s friendship and companionship, inviting him along on his adventures. He rescues Jum Jum from falling into a pit, and later when they are being held captive in a tower, Mio has a chance to escape when he discovers his cloak renders him invisible, but he refuses to leave his best friend, saying if they are to die they shall die together.

I hope, oh I hope you have a friend/friends like that. True “ride-or-dies.” Life can be hard, and we need our friends. I have several friends like that. Some are older, and have been in my life a long time, shepherding me as a trusted source of wisdom and strength. Some are younger, generously sharing their excitement and exuberance with me. And some are my “Ride together, die together, bada** brothers for life.” I could do without them, I suppose, but I hope I never have to, for my life would be far, far less without them.

-Mio is finally facing off against the evil knight, Kato. He has already fought a tough battle against him, nearly getting taken out several times by Kato’s spells and attacks. But now Kato stands before him, admitting defeat. Or does he? Kato’s voice, so quiet, almost hypnotic, tells Mio that yes, he can strike him down, but “even if you kill me, you cannot destroy evil.” “Let me live,” Kato offers. “Take your faithful little friend and your white horse, go home to your father. He is waiting for you,” he says with a little smile.

Kato knows Mio’s weakness, his love for his father and how he longs to be with him. Mio must’ve struggled, just a bit, at that moment. If he killed Kato but could not truly destroy evil, then what was the point? What was the point of even setting out on his journey in the first place? Mio must’ve felt so tired. And he did miss his father, dreadfully. If he truly couldn’t make a difference, then why not just leave? Kato’s even offering to let his friend and his horse go, too!

But Mio quickly shakes off Kato’s offer, remembering that his father and Jum Jum believe in him, are trusting him to rescue all the stolen children. That he is the only one who can do this!

Mio is able to complete his mission because of his father’s faith in him. Our Father the King has faith in us, too, that we can and will complete the quests we have been given. Even though they may seem unconquerable, and we may reach points where there seems to be no hope and we want to turn back to safety, do not give up! The enemy is afraid of me, afraid of you. He is afraid of the power within us and what we are capable of! Don’t let him convince you otherwise! I believe in you! Keep the faith, Child of the King. It was prophesied long ago that you will be victorious.

-Mio strikes his death blow, and Kato is no more. But before he dies he says a strange thing. “At last I am free of this heart of stone…it has crushed and smothered me, for so long…” In the book, there is even a passage where Mio can see in Kato’s eyes how much he longs to be rid of his heart of stone.

In her devotional “A Heart of Stone,” Julia Pris Vanderveen describes those with hearts of stone as “cold, impenetrable, stubborn, and unrepentant, but also that having a stone-cold heart is a miserable thing which makes life harder than it has to be.” She goes on, “Turning back to God can be a huge, courageous step, especially if it means leaving old habits and attitudes behind. But the promise of having an undivided heart and God’s Spirit in a heart of flesh is definitely the better way. It’s what God desires for our lives. It makes a radical change in life worth every effort, and we can do it in God’s strength.”

Unfortunately for Kato, death was the only way for him to be free of his heart of stone. We have to die as well, but only to self (which is sometimes just as hard!) But when we make that choice to give up our old self and embrace our Father the King and all He has for us, He promises in Ezekiel 11:19, “I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh.”

-The battle is over, and Mio, as foretold for thousands of years, is victorious. The curse over the captive children has been broken, and they are free. Led by Mio and Jum Jum, everyone returns to the Land of Faraway and to their families. But where is Mio’s father, the king? He is waiting for him, in the garden, and they joyfully embrace. His father whispers to him, “Mio…my Mio,” as he holds him. They will never be parted again.

I was about fourteen years old when I first saw this movie on the Disney Channel, and this, this is the scene that thirty-six years later still haunts my heart, and I didn’t even know Jesus when I first saw this film. I was just re-watching this movie the other night to prepare for this post, and that scene, decades later after dozens of watches, still gives me goosebumps and fills my eyes with tears. Mio, running, hurrying to his father that he had been separated from for so long. That final hug, the connection, the oneness.

Steven Curtis Chapman has a song called “Heaven in the Real World,” and part of its lyrics go like this:

“Where is the hope, where is the peace,

That will make this life complete?

For every man, woman, boy and girl,

Looking for heaven in the real world.

To stand in the pouring rain and believe the sun will shine again,

To know that the grave is not the end,

To feel the embrace of grace and cross the line where real life begins,

To know in your heart, you’ve found the missing part.”

Our Father the King is waiting for us in His Garden. As I shared in the first paragraph, this is something I dream about often. To get that Embrace of Grace. To be held, physically, by my Father the King. To audibly hear his voice in my ear, “Sarah…my Sarah.” Nothing, absolutely nothing else will compare. I live for that day.

Closing Thoughts

I want to close out this post with a bit of a disclaimer. This movie and the book are very special to me, and speak to my heart in unique and tender ways. On the surface, though, this movie has kind of a rep for being, well, cheesy. I will freely admit it is a little. Maybe more than a little. (Although when I posted the trailer for Mio in my Forged in Film Facebook group, my friend Wade responded with: “Music by ABBA?!?! CHRISTOPHER LEE? Superman’s mom? How have I never heard of this??” which was really cool ♥️)

It has a low budget, and 80s standard special effects. Detractors will mock for hours about the infamous “beard ride” scene. But those things don’t bother me because the message the movie sends supersedes anything of lesser quality. I was listening to a podcast where they reviewed this film (I can’t remember which one) where the two hosts were ripping it apart pretty good. But at one point, one of the ‘casters says to the other, “Yeah, but you know what? There was something about this film. I’d never seen it before, but when I watched it…well I can’t really describe it except to say that it made me nostalgic for something I’d never seen.” His partner agreed.

Astrid Lindgren, from what I can tell, was at best an agnostic. I did some research but in the end, I have no idea what kind of relationship she had with God, if any at all. But my Father the King never seems to let that stop Him.

That’s what this blog is all about, finding God in movies (and TV, books, music, what have you). He is there, you can’t keep Him out. God even finds His way into stories from authors like Stephen King who have flagrantly and publicly disdained Him. It doesn’t matter what critics say, or how much money a movie made at the box office, or how awful its special effects are. If a movie moves you…if it makes you cry, laugh, dream…that’s all that matters! Pay attention to those moments, because your Father the King is there, if you have eyes to see, and a heart that hungers after His. With every blog post I write, my hope and prayer is that you will see Him in a way that you never have before, that you will understand His love of you better.

Right now, your Father the King is speaking your name. Can you hear it?

“My Child…”