People think that God is the problem. Or the person in midlife often manipulates God for their own satisfaction. We start to believe that we control our destiny--we become God. People believe the end product is the important thing--the method of getting there is relatively unimportant. However, God believes that the process of moving through life is, and our resultant character, as important as the end result. So Jesus encouraged us to trust our day-by-day affairs to God, to live life one day at a time, to trust both the past and the future to God. Romans 8:28 tells us that "all that happens to us is working for our good." That means God doesn’t avoid pain to accomplish our goal. He uses all of life, including pain, to help us develop our character.

During midlife crisis some men and women want to indulge themselves and do their own thing. These people will probably continue to say there is no God, or that they must follow a new god of their own making.

If a person decides to follow no God, the big loss is that of communication with God. Beyond any question, this time is the greatest turmoil of life. What they need most is someone to understand and support them--yet not demean them as persons. Most of the attempted solutions they try, however, tend to cut off God and people who could be the most help.