Great Sea Initiative

 

40 years ago, Lebanese pastor, Youeel Tarabay was awake late at night formulating a dream to help solve a glaring issue for the church in Lebanon, a severe lack of Christian Arabic language resources. The church in the West is blessed to have an abundance of resources right at our fingertips. Many churches around the world utilize these resources as well thanks to the spread of the English language. However, what about the Arab ministry leaders who do not speak English? Where are the resources for them? It was Pastor Youeel’s deep conviction that for the church in the Arab world to thrive, grow and reproduce, it needed a database of quality ministry resources, readily available in the Arabic language. Thus, in those early morning hours, Addmega was born with the name itself being a play on words both in English and Arabic. As an online resource platform, Addmega will constantly be adding and growing its capacity, literally the megabytes it is holding. Also, the word Addmega (ادمغة) in Arabic means “the mind,” a vital component in teaching and discipling the church.

After neighboring country, Syria, was ravaged by civil war, hundreds of thousands of Syrians fled their homeland to the neighboring countries of Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey and eventually all around the world. The plight of the Syrian refugee has been well documented. They continue to be a group in severe need around the world as well as a group in which God is working in remarkable and unprecedented ways. However, one effect of the war that has not been as well documented is how it has left the already small church in Syria depleted. The church is severely lacking in experienced and educated believers to serve in the needed leadership roles of ministry.

Pastor Youeel’s dreams of this online platform converged with a moment in time that found the Church in Syria in crisis. He recognized that this platform could be the exact tool needed to help train a new generation of leaders for the church in Syria, while simultaneously providing a plethora of Arabic resources for the Arabic-speaking church all around the world. At the same time, God brought Vox Church from New Haven, Connecticut into Pastor Youeel’s sphere. A partnership was formed and the dream of Addmega began to take shape. A website was being built entirely in the Arabic language to provide much-needed resources for the church. From children’s ministry and youth ministry to men’s and women’s ministries and even sermons, Addmega would be a one-stop shop for the church to resource its leaders. Ministry leaders could build a curriculum or lesson that fits their needs. Whether they need a game, coloring page, craft activity or bible lesson, the website allows them to pick and choose what is most suitable for their audience and situation.

Finally in the summer of 2023, after 2 years of dedicated work, the platform was ready to be launched. Pastor Youeel and a team from Vox Church hosted the Addmega Church Forum on July 1, 2023. Over 130 people gathered from Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. A special contingent of Syrian church leaders was brought to Lebanon for this event. Not only was the platform launched but participants were trained on how to use the platform and how to train others. The Addmega team continues to add new content to the platform each month for the glory of God and the expansion of His Church in the Arab world. Pray for Pastor Youeel, his team of writers and ministry practitioners, and Vox Church as they partner together to see the church in Syria rebuilt and Arabic-speaking churches worldwide strengthened. Check out www.addmega.org.