I read a book last month for a monthly book review column I write for Renewed and Ready magazine. Never have I had such a hard time putting down a book I was reviewing as I did with this one. The title is
Adventist Book Center Life Without Parole by Rick Fleck. The author is serving a life sentence in a California prison. He was raised on a farm in Alberta by Adventist parents. His story is amazing. It really shows the dark-side of drug abuse that so many of us have never seen...how it takes control over your life and drags you down! It also shows how God finds us in the depths of despair and can use us for His work...even in a maximum state prison.
You can read my full book review below that I wrote for my column:
LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE
Have you ever ignored the Voice of Holy Spirit telling you something is wrong? Perhaps you thought to yourself, “It won’t hurt this one time. I’ll never do it again.” Each time we ignore the Holy Spirit and cross the line, it becomes easier to do it the next time. Eventually sin desensitizes us and erodes our beliefs. Suddenly, we are doing things we never imagined. This is exactly what happened to Rick Fleck—only with deadly consequences—and he shares his sad, yet incredible story in his newly released book, Life Without Parole.
Anyone who knows Rick Fleck today can’t help but be impressed with his positive attitude and passion for sharing his faith—especially considering his situation. For you see, Rick is currently serving a life sentence, with no hope of parole, at the High Desert State Prison in California. He lives in a maximum security prison with violence and evil surrounding him every day, constantly wondering if he will live to see the next sunrise. Yet with God as his protector Rick faces each day without fear. And he looks for every opportunity to share Jesus with people you and I would be afraid to be in the same room with.
Nothing in Rick’s childhood suggests he should have ended up in prison for life on a murder charge. He was a third-generation Adventist. He grew up living on a farm in Alberta, Canada. His parents sacrificed to send him to Christian schools. He was outgoing, popular, and a star athlete. Yet through a series of terrible choices he was sucked into a life of alcohol, drugs, money, and violence—a life that almost destroyed him.
In Life Without Parole, Rick gives an honest account of his downward spiral and how his bad choices cost him everything. He also shares the redemption he found within the cold prison walls and how God is using him today to reach others despite his circumstances. His story will amaze you, saddened you, and encourage you all at the same time.
Rick’s story also demonstrates how easily Satan deceives us into thinking that money and power give us happiness, as well as how drug addiction can destroy your life and hurt those around you. In addition, Rick’s book demonstrates the power of God to draw His children back to Him, and shows how God can use us no matter what are circumstances are—even living in a maximum security prison.
You won’t be able to put down Rick’s book. His honesty and vivid writing draws you into his story and takes you on a rollercoaster ride. And when you finish, you won’t be the same. Life Without Parole challenges your thinking about both the nature of sin and the power of God.
Life Without Parole
Price: $16.99, ISBN# 0-8163-2228-7
Available at your local Adventist Book Center or online
www.AdventistBookCenter.com.By Nicole Batten
Nicole lives in Newfoundland, Canada with her husband and two boys where she works as a publicity consultant and freelance writer. Have a comment to share? Write her at nicole@gofishpublicity.com.
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