Students Brought From Death To Life in Ellensburg
By Deacon Tuttle
God is the ultimate creator and storyteller. The Lord invites us to be a part of the process by sharing our testimonies and proclaiming the gospel in baptism. This school year in Ellensburg, God has shown his saving and transformative power in the lives of Tevin Murlin and Devon Carson. Christians are saved to be sent out and to proclaim what God has done on our behalf.
“So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.” - 2 Timothy 1:8
Tevin Murlin, a freshman studying ASL at Central Washington University, chose to be baptized this Winter Quarter. Prior to his recent proclamation that “Jesus is Lord,” he had seen such a strong change in his life because of God’s power.
Tevin came to Ellensburg in the Fall of 2024. During the move-in week, Bennett and Jordyn Evanger met Tevin. Through their friendship, he was quickly connected with Village and received further invitations to dive deeper into the community. “It started with me wanting to hang with Bennett more.” God has been using Tevin’s willingness to say yes to bring Him to people who need to hear the good news of Jesus.
Every Tuesday and Thursday, Ellensburg staff and students share the Gospel, praying for new relationships and stories for God’s glory. Tevin shares how his time as an observer during this rhythm has shaped his understanding of the Gospel. “It’s been very eye-opening.” Building off of this, he has seen the need for evangelism and is beginning to learn how to articulate this to others. “Hopefully, we can plant the seeds, and God can get it to grow.”
In five months, God has rapidly transformed areas where Tevin had previously struggled for long periods. “He’s helped with my anger, anxiety, and depression.” The Lord has broken many chains in his life and his addiction as well. When Tevin devoted himself to God, he says he experienced a 180 in his demeanor towards people. At that point, he was ready to take the next step, proclaim his testimony, and sign up for baptism service.
Initially, he struggled with formulating the story that God had been crafting in his life. “My testimony was very hard to put into words.” Through revising and meditating on his testimony, he was prepared to bear witness. When he stood in front of the congregation on Feb 16. 2025, it was difficult to share the transformation he had gone through. But according to Tevin, “God gave me the words and the memorization to remember what to say.”
“We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” - Romans 6:4
Soon, Tevin wants to explore leadership opportunities such as Village leadership. For ministry, he is hoping to let Christ’s light shine through him as an RA on CWU’s campus by displaying the fruits of the spirit and resisting worldliness. “Take the basket off my candle and help shine my light into the world through Jesus,” Tevin says.
God can use anything or anyone for his purposes and our good. Even though Tevin experienced apprehension, he saw the importance of sharing God’s work with others. “You may think your testimony is mediocre, but God can use the most mediocre things to further His kingdom.”
Similarly to Tevin, Devon Carson, a sophomore studying psychology at CWU, has been able to engage further in this community. After spending the last two years in Resonate, Devon says he was convicted by the Lord to be baptized: “I felt it was the right time.”
Baptism is a commitment to walking in new life with the Lord, by burying the old self and being raised as a new creation. It is always a celebration in our church to create personalized signs for those being baptized and rejoice in what God has done.
However, not everyone chooses to believe in or submit to Jesus. Only one other member of Devon’s family is a Christian, so this was a roadblock for him at first. “My parents wouldn’t let me do it under their roof, they didn’t believe in baptism.”
Since Devon came to CWU, though, he was able to decide on his terms. Devon was able to see visible differences in his relationship with God in the weeks that followed. “Trust in God more. Going to Him before other people with other problems I have.”
Ted Wolfe, Ellensburg’s site pastor, expressed his pleasure and honor in baptizing Tevin and Devon. “ I praise God that we get to see people come to know Jesus as frequently as we do and get to baptize them. It’s a huge joy to be a witness of God’s saving work.”
After praying over them, Ted announced a call for baptism to those in attendance that night who had never taken that step. This has not been a tradition for Ellensburg in the past, rather something new incorporated into this baptism service. Ted shared the example of scripture in Acts 8:26-36 where Philip and an Ethiopian demonstrated this practice. One of the Ellensburg staff team values is their desire to promote courage, which fits perfectly with this invitation.
“We know that Bellingham has done it, and so it’s not that crazy. If there happens to be someone who responded on the spot to following Jesus or felt convicted to get baptized that night but made a decision to follow him sometime before, then we wanted to offer that opportunity. If the Spirit’s at work, we don’t want to miss it.”
Indeed, God is so evidently at work in stories like Tevin’s and Devon’s, as well as in the lives of students all over. If you have not proclaimed your story yet or experience doubts about taking the next step, I hope these testimonies are encouraging. Let us celebrate and rejoice that God is in our presence. We can thank him for the opportunity to share our testimonies, be baptized, and live as sent people for those who don’t yet know Jesus.
