A life that begins as "ordinary" in almost every way soon shifts to become extraordinary, if at times misguided, in this frank memoir. Vollmin grew up on a prairie farm in Canada, the son of a righteous, hard-working mother and a determined, stern disciplinarian father. The boy was expected to perform manly farm chores from an early age. Church attendance taught him that God expected him to do right. But by adolescence, he discovered numerous wrongful activities, even addictions, to pornography, gambling, and alcohol. Remarkably, he attended Bible college, feeling a distant longing to become a preacher. But he often failed, starting a "family friendly" pool hall that became a huge financial loss, among other endeavors. A total psychological breakdown gradually led him to a more organized lifestyle and acceptance of a refreshed view of Christianity, allowing for further progress.

Vollmin, still active in church life in his sixties, offers his accumulated wisdom along with his stark confessions, enlivened by a strong belief in biblical truth and God's power to heal. He creates a lengthy metaphor for the sinner's path, likening it to carrying around a bag of stinking garbage, then finding God, who seems not to notice the offending odors. He realizes that since God has entered the scene, the stink has begun to dissipate and finally disappears entirely. Vollmin has praise for his faithful, long-suffering, and courageous wife and has come to terms with and learned to love his strict father as he gains perspective over the years. His book, the product of several years' work, is based on scripture regarding the need for religious seekers to stand and prevail with God's help. It can provide rich material for Bible study for Christians of any age willing to examine their own lives as openly as Vollmin has done.

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