On Earth as It Is in Heaven
The Yi Family’s First Scalpel At The Cross Vision Trip
Lima + Pucallpa, Peru | July 28–August 5, 2026
At Scalpel At The Cross, we often talk about the power of a simple “yes.”
For more than 20 years, God has used the yes of surgeons, volunteers, missionaries, donors, churches, families, and friends to grow a medical ministry committed to healing hearts and bones in the Peruvian Amazon. This summer, Gracialiana R. Silva Yi and the Yi family added their yes to that story.
Through Kris Yi’s involvement on the Scalpel At The Cross Board, their family joined our Vision Team in Peru to experience the mission firsthand. They traveled from Lima to Pucallpa, visited the Miracle Campus, witnessed clinic day and our medical campaign, met the people and ministry partners who make this work possible, and saw how medicine, hospitality, aviation, worship, prayer, and countless individual gifts come together in service of one Kingdom.
But what began as an opportunity to see the mission became something much more personal. We asked Gracialiana to share the experience in her own words. What follows is her reflection on a week that reminded her family that God can use whatever He has already placed in our hands.
EXTRAORDINARY
If I had to describe this trip in one word, it would be extraordinary.
I witnessed one of the most beautiful expressions of the body of Christ in action.
“All the believers were together and had everything in common.” Again and again, I saw people offering what God had placed in their hands to bring healing, hope, restoration, and the love of Christ into places marked by suffering.
Doctors. Hosts. Pilots. Translators. Missionaries. Families. Different gifts. Different organizations. One Kingdom.
I Was All In
Missions had been missing from my life since before having kids. So when the opportunity came for our family to join this Vision Trip through Kris’s involvement on the SATC board, I was all in.
Per usual, I didn’t have many expectations, except for the heat. But right before we left, I was tired. It had been a summer full of adventures, and my prayer was admittedly a selfish one:
“Lord, renew our family’s strength and help us finish the summer strong before the kids go back to school.” I had no idea how He would answer that prayer.
The Beginning
Our first two days in Lima were a gift. We had the incredible company of Dr. Peter Cole, founder of Scalpel At The Cross, whose passion for healing hearts and bones in Peru has continued for more than 20 years.
Dr. Cole is somehow a force of nature and one of the kindest, most gracious people to our family. His energy and focus are remarkable. Mr. Luebke Jr., Chairman and CEO of Pima Medical Institute, was another gift of the trip: generous, funny, wise, and simply lovely company.
At one point, the two of them disappeared to go paragliding over Lima’s coastal cliffs. Naturally. And because Peruvian food is already one of our favorites, we were very happy to discover that this portion of the trip required absolutely no sacrifice.
An Ecosystem of the Kingdom
On Friday, we were joined by Dr. Cole’s brother Steve, his daughter Faith, and Diana. At Jungle Bunks and Villa, we learned more about the medical mission and reviewed critical trauma cases with Dr. Woolley.
That evening, we gathered at the Miracle Campus for praise and worship, powered by generators, and a tiny earthquake that everyone assured us was completely normal. But what marked me wasn’t the earthquake. It was the room. Different organizations, different callings, different gifts, worshiping under one roof and partnering to further God’s Kingdom in the same region. As we sang, “Christ alone, Cornerstone, weak made strong,” I became deeply emotional.
Hope Made Tangible
The Miracle Campus will provide prosthetics and physical therapy rehabilitation services in the Ucayali region, extending the work of healing long after a surgery is complete.
On Sunday, there was a power outage across the city. After worshiping with the Mil Palmeras church, we received the news: The lights at the Miracle Campus had officially turned on. May God continue to use Daniel Mueller, Isaac, and the entire team to heal hearts and bones through the work happening there.
Perspective and the Gospel
We are incredibly grateful to Craig and Heather, Todd and Stephanie, David and Lisa, Sam and Nicole, and the entire SAM AIR team for their warm welcome and for a spectacular and safe flight over the Amazon jungle.
Seeing the region from above gave me a different perspective on both its beauty and its remoteness. Richard Hetzel also opened another window for us: the importance of orality and of communicating Scripture in ways indigenous communities can truly receive and understand. Thank you for your hospitality, stories, worship, prayer, preaching, translating, and somehow having energy left after all of it.
Clinic Day: Hope in the Middle of Suffering
Approximately 150 patients came seeking help. That evening, the team faced the incredibly difficult task of selecting about 30 patients for surgery beginning Monday.
What struck me just as much as the medical care was that every patient was cared for spiritually as well. During clinic day, and again before and after surgery, patients were prayed over, and the Gospel was shared with them.
The mission was never only about fixing what was broken physically. It was about seeing the whole person and offering healing, hope, prayer, and the love of Christ together.
I was overwhelmed by both realities at once: the magnitude of the need and the extraordinary beauty of people choosing to meet it. I felt deeply humbled by what Dr. Cole began more than 20 years ago and by how God has multiplied that yes through so many others.
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.”
So Many Faithful Yeses
Dr. E, Dani, our dear friend, thank you for recommending Kris for this extraordinary mission and for leading the medical team so beautifully alongside Dr. Caron, Dr. Den Hartog, and so many others.
Thank you all for making us feel seen, for patiently explaining X-rays, hardware, and procedures, and for graciously welcoming us into your world. I promise I’ll be more careful entering the OR next time, assuming I ever have the courage to enter one again. And to the local SATC team, Tiffany and Michael, Timoteo and Maria Laura, Todd and Stephanie, Linus, and the many others faithfully carrying this mission forward, thank you.
The Ministry I Didn’t Expect
Van and Vanessa, what a gift you were to us. Your hospitality, generosity, perseverance, and endurance deeply impacted me. You have built something beautiful: a place that welcomes, blesses, restores, and refreshes people who have come to pour themselves out for others.
And apparently, God knew I needed to see that. I can’t wait to hear more stories, see the dogs again, and, of course, reunite with the famous Sid. “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.”
I went to Peru praying that God would refresh us. Instead, He showed me people whose lives are devoted to refreshing others. And somehow, that refreshed me.
Watching Van and Vanessa use their home and hospitality to serve missionaries planted something very tangible in our hearts: we want to do the same.
We came home dreaming about a small hospitality ministry of our own, a place for missionaries, pastors, and ministry leaders to pause, rest, and be renewed. God’s Kingdom becomes visible when His people offer what is already in their hands.
A scalpel. An airplane. A home. A meal. A language. A gift. A song. A prayer. None of us can close every gap created by the suffering and brokenness of this world. But we can faithfully step into the one God places in front of us. Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
The People Who Made Our Yes Possible
Thank you, Yuki, Fernanda, and Maru, for organizing the trip, carrying countless logistics behind the scenes, and making this experience as smooth as it was.
And thank you for helping us make the care packages possible. To every person who contributed items, attended the gala, supported the mission financially, or partnered with us in prayer: thank you. You were part of this too.
One of my favorite parts was doing it together. Despite my concerns about keeping up with Dr. Cole’s pace, our kids were absolute troopers. At this point, they’re ready for anything. I’m especially grateful that everyone stayed safe and healthy and that our children had the opportunity to witness all of this firsthand.
Kris and I came home excited to continue serving together as a family in the summers ahead. Kris, I couldn’t be prouder of you for beginning this journey when neither of us really knew what it would mean. I’m so glad you said yes.
One Last Reflection: Through Their Eyes
Perhaps my favorite summary of the trip came from Kaley and Kaleb.
In their notebook, they remembered the people Scalpel helps, taking off over the lake, the beautiful trees, riding in the back of the truck, one of Van and Vanessa’s German shepherds, and, of course, Sid the sloth. A week of healing, adventure, hospitality, creation, and joy, remembered through the eyes of our children.
On Earth as It Is in Heaven
I left Peru with far more than I expected.
I saw suffering. I saw hope. I saw extraordinary generosity. I saw people quietly giving their lives to work that matters. I saw the body of Christ, not as an idea, but alive and moving.
A glimpse. A reminder. An invitation. On earth as it is in heaven.
Please continue to pray for the patients and families of the Ucayali region, the missionaries who call Peru home, the medical teams who travel to serve, SATC and its partners, and for more people willing to offer whatever God has placed in their hands.
With love and gratitude,
Gracialiana R. Silva Yi & the Yi Family
Keep Exploring
This trip was shaped by many people and organizations faithfully serving the people of the Peruvian Amazon. We encourage you to continue learning about the people and ministries working together to bring hope to this region.
Different gifts. Different organizations. One Kingdom.