Yesterday, I asked why Christians are so loathe to deal with economic issues that extend beyond the merely personal. 

My post today deals with the personal.

Cerulean Sanctum has been around since September of 2003. I had a blog called The Boiled Frog Blog that ran for a few years before CS, so I'm ancient in the blogging realms. Yep, five years makes you a geezer.

This blog started as an outlet for ministry when none existed for me. I'm a stay-at-home dad who homeschools, tends our growing farm, and writes professionally as a freelance commercial writer. I aspire to be a published novelist, so I'm working toward that ends, too. But most of all, I'm a man with a deep desire to disciple others in Christ by asking tough questions that other Christians tend to avoid. The only way to grow deep disciples is to  challenge them to wrestle with difficult solutions to intractable problems. If you've read this blog long enough, you've witnessed this firsthand.

Jonathan V. Last, editor of The Daily Standard, encouraged me to begin blogging by writing what I'm passionate about. My passion is the American Church. For that reason, I've tackled many heavy church-related subjects here at Cerulean Sanctum. Every week I get private e-mails from folks saying that this blog has been a blessing just by being unafraid to confront the Gordian Knots that face the American Church. I thank every one of you who have written. Your notes mean the world to me.

Because of the nature of this blog, I long ago decided to reject any kind of advertising here. I don't believe it's possible to remain objective on a blog if you're accepting advertising money from outsiders. And what the American Church needs more than anything are Christians who are unafraid to tackle all aspects of the Faith in all aspects of life no matter who that puts out. For this reason, you'll never find outside advertisers on Cerulean Sanctum. It's too much of an incentive to start catering to whomever is sponsoring this blog. If Cerulean Sanctum ever lost its edge, there'd be no reason to come here.

There are no Amazon or PayPal donation buttons to press at Cerulean Sanctum, either. I have received freely, so I give freely.

I do, however, believe a workman should earn his own keep.

I've come close to shutting this blog down numerous times, usually because I feel I'm only adding more talk to an American Christianity already mired in hearing itself talk. Talk is cheap; action is what matters. And a Christianity ensconced in a crystal flask is as far from the vital reality of the Church Jesus Christ founded as the farthest galaxy is from the computer monitor you're reading this on right now.

I'm NOT shutting down Cerulean Sanctum. However, my reality is that my family is increasingly pressed by the economic issues we face in America, issues that are not good and are not getting better. This has forced me to be objective. I can't devote time to Cerulean Sanctum if I can't keep pace with skyrocketing costs in so many sectors of our economy. While God has blessed me with outstanding clients and blessed me further by their deep appreciation for my writing skills, unless I can devote more time to securing at least five more of them to make up the increasing differential we face, I won't be able to give Cerulean Sanctum the best of what I can offer. It would continue to exist, albeit in a drastically diminished form. I don't believe that must happen, though.

This is where you come in. If you're a long-time Cerulean Sanctum reader, you know that I firmly believe that we Christians must do a better job of working with each other to meet each others' needs. My need is to add more clients to my roster. If you would like to help me locate at least five new clients who need the skills I can provide as a freelance commercial writer, please e-mail me at the address at right. I don't wish to do any more plugging here, but through an e-mail I can let you know the types of writing I provide and the well-known companies and organizations I've written for.

Folks, we need each other. No one is an island. Tough times are on the way. Thanks for helping my family through them by assisting me with this request.

May the Lord bless you abundantly and beyond your fondest desire.

Dan