Karen Ehman - When Making Others Happy Is Making You Miserable

Dont you wish youd learned years ago how to say no in a caring and honoring way? With her personal experiences and the truth of Gods Word as her blueprint, Karen has created a valuable resource to guide the approval addict out of a life stifled by misery.

CHRYSTAL EVANS HURST, bestselling author and speaker

Karen offers ways to put your people-pleasing tendencies in perspective so you can experience the freedom and happiness you deserve. This book is a great guide to help you break free from the toxic patterns of pleasing others at the risk of losing yourself.

REBEKAH LYONS, bestselling author of Rhythms of Renewal and You Are Free

Im so grateful to Karen Ehman for writing a book on the much-needed topic of people pleasing. As someone who has struggled with being miserable, anxious, and stressed over what people think about me, I constantly need reminders of the truth that its not my job to win the approval of others but to instead honor the Lord with my life.

CRYSTAL PAINE, New York Times bestselling author, podcaster, and founder of MoneySavingMom.com

Karen Ehmans books are always practical, purposeful, and firmly rooted in Scripture. This one is all that and more. Digging deep into her own people-pleasing heart, Karen mines priceless gems that sparkle with truth. And, like diamonds, those hard truths cut through our resistance to change, helping us focus on pleasing God rather than people. Her best book yet.

LIZ CURTIS HIGGS, bestselling author of The Girls Still Got It

If the people pleaser in you is allowing others to pull you apart at the seams, this book will help put you back together again! In Karen Ehmans new book, you will encounter the good news of Gods approval of us in Christan approval that will enable you to love others, in time, deeply and freely.

DR. PATRICK SCHWENK, pastor, cohost of the Rootlike Faith podcast, and coauthor of In a Boat in the Middle of a Lake

This book should be required reading for every woman! Karen is masterful at moving from biblical principles to practical application, and she doesnt leave any area of the people-pleasing trap untouched within these pages. Get ready for a real conversation you may not even realize you need to have.

MICHELLE MYERS, founder of She Works HIS Way

Within the first chapter I felt like Karen was inside my head: How does she know my thoughts? Anyone struggling with people pleasing and approval addiction will feel known by this bookand not just known but led closer to Christ: our savior and ultimate Approver.

PHYLICIA MASONHEIMER, founder and CEO of Every Woman a Theologian

Through pointed stories, sound theology, and practical advice, Karen offers insight and refreshing vulnerability. Youll laugh. Youll gulp. And as you journey with her through the process of exposing people pleasing, youll rejoice in finding a way forward. May this hopeful book help you replace needless misery with Gods boundless acceptance!

JUSTIN DETMERS, PhD, Riverview Church, REO Town Venue pastor

This book left me feeling convicted in the best way. Karen gives you tools, backed by Scripture, on how to stop living your life at the mercy of others so you can start building a life that pleases God. She teaches you how to say no with confidence so you can live a life less stressed and more fulfilled in the long run.

AMBER EMILY SMITH, wife of country music artist Granger Smith, mother, actor, philanthropist, and influencer

In these pages, Ehman uses insights from Gods Word to pinpoint precisely why we struggle with people pleasing, as well as to provide simple steps for living free. If you cannot stop craving approval, this book has good news for you.

SHARON HODDE MILLER, author of Nice: Why We Love to Be Liked and How God Calls Us to More

ZONDERVAN BOOKS

When Making Others Happy Is Making You Miserable

Copyright 2021 by Karen Ehman

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Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

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ISBN 978-0-310-34758-3 (softcover)

ISBN 978-0-310-34763-7 (audio)

ISBN 978-0-310-34759-0 (ebook)

Epub Edition June 2021 9780310347590

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.Zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from the Amplified Bible. Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987, 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org).

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Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version). Copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

The author is represented by Meredith Brock, Proverbs 31 Ministries.

Cover design: Alison Fargason Design

Cover photo: Jamie Grill Atlas / Stocksy

Interior design: Denise Froehlich

Printed in the United States of America

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