A Tribute: Caroline Gross, God’s Gift to Nigeria Among the Igala

     Jesus was a faithful High Priest in all of God’s house. He was an Apostle, a Good Shepherd, and a Master Teacher. He was the Good News manifested in the flesh (Hebrews 3:1-6).
     He went to heaven and sent His Spirit. He took parts of Himself, and spread them out over the Body of Christ, the Church. Every true believer, therefore, is endowed with any one of these gifts (Ephesians 4:7-11). Caroline and Paul were certainly gifted. They were builders, a gift to Nigeria among the Igala speaking people. Their authority to serve was derived from their gift, not from their position as foreigners who lived among the Igala as missionaries.
     The Hewstones and the Grosses as well as Miss Gillette were the pioneer missionaries of the Plymouth Brethren work in Nigeria. Paul and Caroline assumed leadership of this growing and fruitful work upon the death of Paul’s parents. Paul’s heart was prepared as he grew up observing the dedication and commitment of his parents to the Lord in their service to Him. He saw firsthand the extreme challenges of pioneering missionary service and learned well.
     Caroline, whose parents were also missionaries, learned greatly from the life of their devotion, dedication, and spiritual engagement to the Lord. Though Caroline and Paul were both missionary children, their decision to serve the Lord in Nigeria was not intellectual or emotional; it was an exercise of devoted hearts, in response to the Lord Himself. They were sent to build, and build they did (Romans 10:14-15).
     Having been sent by the Lord, together they endured the trials that came to them. They did not shrink from doing anything helpful in proclaiming the message to all they met in the land. Their method was holistic, addressing the needs of the human body, soul, and spirit. They were incarnational in ministry, adapting to challenges and changes as they occurred.

     When Paul died in 1982, Caroline carried on the work through dedicated men and women whom they had raised in their many years of fruitful ministry. At long last, Caroline has gone to be with the Lord she loved and served and her husband who had earlier crossed the veil. The work she left is with us as the Lord’s work in Nigeria. It will not be remembered as the Gross empire.

     Caroline and Paul did things worth writing about as evidenced in the various aspects of the work under their brand name: Christian Missions in Many Lands, Nigeria, Inc. They were not limited to themselves; they reached out, loved, and worked well with all in the land who were equally reaching out to the lost for the greatest of all Masters. The works they mentored, nurtured, and assisted were Ejoka Mission, Ayangba Fellowship, Faith Bible College, Robert Hyslop’s Bassa Mission, Igala translation work, Iyale Memorial Hospital, and Ministry of Mercy. In addition, every day in their home they entertained friends and strangers. Besides, they represented the ministry of Grace and Truth in Atlanta, Georgia, as well as their daily radio broadcast in Igala through the network of ELWA.

     Today their day may have ended with their deaths, but certainly their legacy and the cherished memories of their labor of love will remain with us, as service without hate, bitterness, or rancor. We celebrate their passing as lives well spent on earth. We join, therefore, the Lord in saying, “Well done, thou faithful servants.” Adieu! Till we meet again at the golden daybreak.

T. Cyprian and Joy Ann Kia