Stop Chasing Happy: And Start Pursuing Your Purpose

by Phil Waldrep

You Were Made for More than Mere Happiness

The world wants you to believe a person, product, or lifestyle can bring you fulfillment. Even as a Christian, it’s easy to fall for these empty promises and find yourself frustrated when they bring you to a dead end. So how can you experience soul-deep peace that endures beyond the sugar rush of earthly distractions?

In Stop Chasing Happy , bestselling author Phil Waldrep will help you find the meaning God wants for your life. As you examine the principles of Christlike joy, you’ll understand the incredible mission you share with every believer and the unique purpose God gave only to you. Meanwhile, you’ll learn habits you can use daily to brighten your outlook and uplift your spirit.

For anyone feeling beat up and burned out, Stop Chasing Happy is a guidebook to living the life of intention and hope God created you to have. Get ready to get past the cultural obsession with fleeting happiness and start seeking the satisfaction that lasts forever.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help

192 pages, Paperback

Published October 12, 2021

Reviews

[Kev Willoughby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm finished, but I'm going to read this one again.

I first heard of Phil Waldrep when I was a kid. Growing up in Northeast Alabama, my church would sometimes send our youth group to his summer camp at Shocco Springs. Those days and nights on campus at the retreat were unforgettable for me and helped encourage my spiritual growth in Christ. My time there is one of my favorite memories of adolescence. Although those experiences were a few decades ago, it is cool to see that Phil Waldrep is still writing, and I wanted to check this one out.

The synopsis of the book states, "For anyone feeling beat up and burned out, Stop Chasing Happy is a guidebook to living the life of intention and hope God created you to have. Get ready to get past the cultural obsession with fleeting happiness and start seeking the satisfaction that lasts forever." The author delivers on this promise, and this is an excellent summary of what a reader will find here. The one thing that trips up many people is confusing happiness with joy. Using personal stories to illustrate his points, Rev. Waldrep beautifully brings into focus the fact that (as believers) we should be driven by our God-given purpose in life. If we're able to do so, we don't become distracted by or consumed with chasing an emotional feeling that is fleeting and based on our current circumstances. Instead, we're able to correctly view our lives through the lens of Romans 8:28 and live a life that is more spiritually sound, both for our own sakes and for the witness of others.

My favorite chapter of this book was the one titled, "Purpose Clarifies Your Past," and my favorite quote from that chapter was, "All the bad things that happened to Joseph would have destroyed him had he been focused on pursuing happiness. But his desire to fulfill the purpose God had for him caused him to rise above the hurt."

Wow.

Along those same lines, in the chapter before that one (titled, "Purpose Produces Security"), he teaches, "Knowing why you are here and having a commitment to your purpose gives a sense of security that you will never find chasing happiness or pleasing others."

In each chapter, Rev. Waldrep confronts some of the major obstacles that prevent people from living a life of purpose (notice that "purpose" replaces "happiness"). These obstacles include our past, our relationships and the things that others may say about us, as well as our insecurities. This is one of those books that is good to keep and good to gift to others that you want to love and encourage.

I recommend reading this one at least annually!

[Rubi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great advice and mindset. This book explains the difference between "happiness" and joy.
It shows examples of people's life who've achieved everything people thing would make one happy: wealth, fame, cars, etc, but they're not. And then it shows how those who put God's plans for their life's vs their own find their purpose in life. That PURPOSE is what brings them joy.
Really made one think, as a Christian. Are my priorities straight? Am I scared to walk the path God wants me on and choosing my own? That would explain some of my unhappiness and "failure".
Quick read too. Highly recommend, especially for Christians.

[Bruce Stopher · Rating 2 out of 5]

Near the end of this book the author writes, "When I started in ministry, I was young and inexperienced. My preaching wasn’t very effective, nor was it spiritually deep." I could say the same about this book - it's not very effective or spiritually deep.

The booked is filled with stories about people who weren't happy, and the author used the Epistle to the Philippians to focus on joy instead. But there's very little content on how to "start pursuing your purpose" and nothing about how to discover purpose, although we're told often about the results of the pursuit.

[Jafon Snoth · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who was attempting to dissect the difference between happiness and joy, this book was perfect. Some parts can feel a bit long, but the message is most certainly worth it. Our world is beset by this belief happiness is the answer to all, which is why I’m glad this book was so adamant about the consequences of chasing it, as well as showing the importance of chasing after what God has planned.

[Richard Bankey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't usually read self-help books, but I tried this one amd I really enjoyed it. It teaches you how to stop casing happy and to find your purpose in life and experience joy. The author share a lot of stories about people he has met and uses those to get his point across. This book is a quick read and I highly recommend it.

[Shirley]

This the second book I have read by Phil Waldrep and I enjoy his writing as much as I enjoy Women of Joy