george henry-Orville Plummer

BY GEORGE HENRY

STAR Writer, SPALDINGS, CLARENDON

It is said that the future of any country rests in its youth, and that view is fully supported by Reverend Orville Plummer, the national youth and Christian education director for the New Testament Church of God in Jamaica and the Cayman Island.

He wants youth to be developed totally, and as is said in St. Luke 2:52, where "Jesus increased in wisdom and stature in favour with God and man", the young minister wants the same for the youth.

"I think that is the model that Christ has for young people. They must be developed physically, they must be developed intellectually and they must be developed spiritually," said Plummer.

Reverend Plummer started his Christian walk with Jesus in 1988 and has served as pastor for several congregations since 1996. He is the son of late Clarendon sports administrator, Lloyd Plummer.

He has served as youth pastor at the Eastwood Park New Testament, the Mountain View New Testament in the Corporate Area, and the Haddo and Ramble New Testament Churches in Westmoreland and Hanover, respectively. He was also district overseer for the Porus district of New Testament Churches in Manchester.

balance and influence

The youth leader said God wants young people to be balanced and influential in their school, community and in the wider world. Hence, his vision is to see to the holistic development of youth within the churches and the community.

Plummer said the community cannot be neglected at the expense of focusing on the church as this could result in social problems. Hence, it is important that the church interacts with the community through programmes that are intended for the youth in the church.

He wants pastors to realise that the youth of today are not necessarily rude but that they are much more aware and advanced in technology. So, the approaches used to get them in the '60s, '70s, '80s and even '90s must be used with modern-day techniques.

The national youth director added that pastors need to be patient with the youth, understand them, and by all means reach out to them wherever they are, so that they can get them where they want them to be. The youth, he said, should be included in programmes and activities, especially young men.

"The young men, for the most part, are turned off from churches, and pastors need to develop programmes for them. Mentorship programmes, discipleship programmes, programmes that will energise young men," stated Reverend Plummer.

He added that it is not just to have the youth in the walls of the churches, but that efforts must be made to have them trained and cause them to be developed.

father of two

The father of two sons, Jehsu and Joel, he is married to Paula Clarke-Plummer. He is the national children's ministry director in the New Testament Church.

Reverend Plummer is a past student of Glenmuir High School in Clarendon and has played as captain for DaCosta Cup football team. He believes that sports is a good vehicle to assist in the teaching of discipline to youth, hence his having football competitions as part of his programme for them.

He said if the Church wants to find the young men in the communities, the place to search for them is on the sports fields. He noted that one of the main reasons that not many young men are in the Church, is that churches are not engaged in activities that would attract them.

"It is not every young man who wants to clap and sing and stuff like that. So sports is very important for us, as we see it as a way of reaching young men in particular, and also a way of linking the churches with the respective communities," said Reverend Plummer.