PASTORS
Tommy & Asenath Casarez
Tommy Casarez’s passion and mission in life is to see God bring about the same kind of change and transformation in people’s hearts, homes, and communities that Tommy personally experienced as a young man.
God changed the trajectory of Tommy’s life as a young man at the age of 18 when he encountered the life-changing power of Jesus Christ.
There, in the barrios of Dallas, TX, Tommy’s heart was healed and transformed in his encounter with Christ. That transformation in his heart led to greater levels of reconciliation in his relationship to others and in the inner-city community where he grew up.
God has taken Tommy from the barrio to the ivory towers of Yale University to complete his second masters degree and to Princeton for doctoral studies. Tommy most recently completed his Ph.D. at Princeton Theological Seminary. His goal in life is to be faithful to God, Asenath (his wife), his children, and the calling of God to serve as Lead Pastor and President of LABI.
Tommy enjoys lifting weights, working with his two English mastiffs, watching basketball, reading books, walking his son Josiah to school, helping his daughter Isabella find a pretty dress to wear, making baby Tabitha laugh, and going out for a nice dinner with his wife, Asenath.
Asenath Casarez was born in East L.A., y que? But, she had the wonderful privilege of growing up in Calexico, CA, where her parents, Asenath and Rosalio Nevarez, served as pastors of a church just across the U.S. border in Mexicali, Mexico. You might say she was born into the church or that she grew up sleeping under the pews.
But, the truth of the matter is that she grew up behind the pulpit singing, leading the congregation in worship, and speaking boldly about the power of God. At the age of 19 she sensed the call of God on her life and decided to go to Latin American Bible Institute for ministry training. She furthered her education at Vanguard University where she completed her B.A. in Business Administration.
Asenath is passionate about leading worship. Her music ministry mantra is “Worship To Be Transformed!” She is also a pretty amazing speaker and looks forward to opportunities to share God’s Word with women from the pulpit or in LIFE group settings.
Asenath enjoys staying up late at night, scrapbooking, laughing with her friends, visiting family in San Diego, cuddling with the babies (Josiah, Isabella and Tabitha Leilani) at anytime during the day, and watching movies with Tommy.
