Pastor’s Formation LibraryKraig Kleeman
Cover of A Tale of Two Pastors
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A Tale of Two Pastors

The Hidden Cost of Resisting God’s Deep Work Within the Soul

A fictionalized parable about two pastors, two secret lives, and one shared failure: resisting the work of becoming whole before God.

$12Read online and download as PDF
  • 14 chapters
  • 60-page PDF
  • About 50 minutes to read
  • Team discussion guide included

By Kraig Kleeman, founder of The Zoé Life

Read a PreviewSee the team guide ↓

The Core Premise

One man’s sins become public. The other man’s sins remain hidden.

Why This Matters

One pastor loses everything and finds God. The other keeps everything and slowly loses himself. This parable explores the difference between reputation and transformation, exposure and repentance, information and intimacy, and reminds readers that ultimate justice rests at the throne of God.

What You'll Discover

  • The Golden Boy and the Giant
  • The theology of self-deception
  • The cost of secrecy
  • The road home
  • The throne: who responded to God?

From the Book

Mark did not lack information. He lacked surrender.
Repentance is not proven by what we say. It is revealed by what we accept.
The erosion is rarely dramatic. A shoreline does not disappear in a day. A soul rarely does either.

For your team · Included with the book

Read it together

A printable discussion guide for staff teams, elder boards and pastor cohorts reading A Tale of Two Pastors together. 4 conversations, one for each part of the book. Each one opens with a line from the book, then gives you questions and one practice to carry into the week.

  1. Session 1 · Prologue and Chapters 1–3

    Two Successful Men

    Mark did not lack information. He lacked surrender. And over time, he would mistake one for the other.

    4 questions · 1 practice

  2. Session 2 · Chapters 4–7

    The Slow Drift

    Repentance begins when we stop defending what God is asking us to surrender.

    4 questions · 1 practice

  3. Session 3 · Chapters 8–10

    Exposure and Repentance

    Repentance is not proven by what we say. It is revealed by what we accept.

    3 questions · 1 practice

  4. Session 4 · Chapters 11–14 and Conclusion

    The Man Who Kept Everything

    The central question of this book has never been: Who was the worse sinner? The central question has always been: Who responded to God?

    5 questions · 1 practice

Free sample · The whole first sessionSession 1: Two Successful MenPart One · Prologue and Chapters 1–3Read Session 1

Mark did not lack information. He lacked surrender. And over time, he would mistake one for the other.

— Chapter 1

For the leader: Both men’s secret lives run through the first three Parts. Keep the conversation on the story and on general patterns. Do not ask anyone to confess in the group. If something stirs, encourage them to take it to one trusted person.

  1. Prologue · Two Men

    Before you knew how their stories ended, which of the two men did you expect to finish well? Why?

  2. Chapter 1 · The Golden Boy

    What is the difference between knowing what God asks and surrendering to it? How can leaders mistake one for the other?

  3. Chapter 2 · The Giant

    What kinds of success make it easier for a leader to resist God without noticing?

  4. Chapter 3 · The Secret Lives

    Both men believed they were protecting their ministries. What do leaders usually tell themselves when they keep something hidden?

Practice for the week

Each person privately finishes one sentence: The place where I know the most and surrender the least is… Keep it between you and God.

The full guide opens from inside the book after you buy it, and prints straight from the page for each person on your team.

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