A Faithful Man in the Ivory Coast

by Bob & Becky Mach

And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. 2 Timothy 2:2

When we opened the Bingerville church in June 2000, the church began by meeting in our home. The church continued in our home up to the outbreak of war in September 2002. With the outbreak of that war, the family of Guy-Maurice was forced to flee to Bingerville from their home in Bangolo in the West of the country. Guy began attending our church and eventually accepted Christ in August 2004 while attending a camp for all the independent Baptist churches in Ivory Coast. Guy was baptized in November of that year and continued growing in the youth group. He became active in the children’s ministry under the direction of BIMI Missionary Tammy Aurand.

During his last year of high school, Guy was required to take a 40-minute bus ride each morning to get to school with the same trip home in the afternoon. Guy would usually spend this time reading Bible passages aloud to the guys sitting around him on the bus and explaining what those passages meant. He would teach what he had learned through the preaching and teaching at our church.

Upon completing high school, Guy attended college where he received the equivalent of a B.S. in Computer Science. However, he did not sense that the Lord was directing him into this field. With time, Guy began to express to us that he desired to serve the Lord as a church pastor. He entered our Bible institute when it first opened in December 2016. Unfortunately, that institute training has suffered many interruptions; however, Guy graduated with a B.A. in Pastoral Ministries in April 2025 as valedictorian of his class.

In the meantime, Guy married Sylvia on March 30, 2019. God has given them two daughters, Odelia (October 2022) and more recently Assena (October 2024). Both he and Sylvia have been very active in our church where Guy has served as Sunday school superintendent, choir member, preacher, teacher, and youth group leader. Sylvia has helped extensively in the ladies’ group of our church as well as Sunday school and the youth group.

Guy currently serves as the Assistant Pastor at the Fundamental Baptist Church of Bingerville. After his ordination, he will become the pastor of that church. As such, Guy will be pastoring a church running nearly 300 people. He will oversee the entire church ministry that includes the ministries of the literacy center, basketball center, and village medical work. He will direct the church’s missions program that currently supports eight missionaries. He will also be overseeing the continuing effort to plant a new church on the other side of Bingerville, resulting from our village ministry.

It is amazing to see how God brought us from the United States to Bingerville, Ivory Coast, while bringing a 12-year-old boy from Bangolo, Ivory Coast, to Bingerville in order to establish His church there in that city. We look forward to many years of fruitful ministry from Pastor Guy and his family.

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