[1]FORT WORTH, Texas (BP)–The brother-sister duo Larue is accustomed to pressure. Phillip and Natalie LaRue have performed in some notable venues. But even these seasoned veterans of the Christian music industry had a few butterflies in the moments leading up to the live national broadcast of True Love Waits’ “Seize the Net.”
“I think it was because we were live,” Phillip said after the Feb. 13 event at Wedgwood Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas. “I was nervous. Usually the shows we do are taped. If you make a mistake, you just stop and start over. But this time, once the cameras were on, there was no turning back.
“I blanked out during the first segment,” he recounted. “But after that it was pretty easy.”
The opportunity to host the televised True Love Waits event was almost a given for LaRue. Phillip, 20, and Natalie, 18, have taken a solid stand for abstinence and purity, regularly inviting concert-goers to sign purity pledges.
“Sexual temptation is so strong,” Phillip told Baptist Press. “I’m 20 years old and I don’t know one person my age who isn’t tempted by sex. Sometimes, the church likes to wash over stuff like that but events like True Love Waits says it’s a real thing [temptation].”
“It’s okay to talk about it,” Natalie added. “Sex is a beautiful thing that God created for us to enjoy within his guidelines. True Love Waits challenges adults and teenagers.”
[2]LaRue said they believe the current generation of teenagers is curious and wants to know answers to the tough questions in life. “But they also want honesty,” Phillip said. “And that’s why we wanted to be a part of this project.”
LaRue said they try to make themselves vulnerable and honest when they perform in concert venues. “It’s way easy to be honest instead of putting on some sort of a fake image that everything is okay,” he said. “I’d be lying to say I have it together in my life. I struggle with temptations just like everyone else.”
“We are not superhumans,” Natalie added. “As soon as we admit we are not, God can use us to reach other people.”
The message from Larue?
Don’t focus on the Christian image, Phillip said. “Focus on Christ.”
“Is music our identity?” Natalie asked. “No. We just get up there and let the music happen. There’s this saying that I love. God doesn’t call the equipped. He equips the called.”
And while the stage lights may have dimmed on True Love Waits’ Seize the Net, Larue said their mission will continue — encouraging teenagers across the country to remain pure.
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(BP) photos posted in the BP Photo Library at http://www.bpnews.net. Photo titles: HOSTS and LaRUE.