God's word teaches us 'always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope you have' (1 Peter 3:15). But we learn from Jesus' example that we also need to understand the situation in which we find others. Think of Jesus' approach to Zaccheus the tax collector or the woman at the well. Not only is it important to be prepared to share the good news, it's also important to be prepared to understand the context in which we share that good news.
For example, what if you were to find yourself sharing the good news with a Wills girl over Brains Faggots on a Bristol Loedekka? An improbable scenario perhaps, but would you be able to make sense of it?
Bristol's 1,000 year history is rich and varied and being a sea port, trade and commerce have been central to the evolution of the city. However, for many of us, knowledge of the city's social and commercial history will not go much beyond slavery, Brunel and Concorde.
From Celestine to Cider; in fifty products and industries Made in Bristol provides an engaging and thoroughly researched overview of the city's recent history that is easy to read and often full of surprises.
Written by someone who is clearly an enthusiast, David Bolton's very partial account of industrial Bristol tells some of the wonderful and often improbable stories of nineteenth and twentieth century trade and manufacturing in Bristol.
Reaching for this book may just help us in reaching the city!
Made in Bristol – 50 Stories of Local Enterprise and Innovation by David Bolton is published by the local Redcliffe Press (£12.95). Buy your copy here.
