Since taking the role of D.J. Tanner on the mega hit "Full House" television series in 1987, Candace Cameron Bure has enjoyed a successful acting and writing career.
Bure, now 37 and the author of the new "Balancing It All: My Story of Juggling Priorities and Purpose," told TheBlaze that her Christian faith defines who she is, guiding her actions both on and off screen.
"My faith is my basis of who I am. Not only does it affect the choices I make career-wise, but it also effects the things that I want to do," said Bure, who has three children and is married to retired NHL player Valeri Bure.
Bure said her faith has had both positive and negative effects on her career in Hollywood.
"I have a really wonderful core audience that has followed me since I was a little girl. They are rooting me on," she said, noting that her fans know they can trust her work to be family-friendly. "In that way my faith really helps me."
Actress Candace Cameron Bure, right, and her daughter Natasha Bure attend the premiere of Disney's "Saving Mr. Banks" at Walt Disney Studios on Dec. 9, 2013 in Burbank, Calif. (Getty Images/Frederick M. Brown)
But Bure said she thinks she's been overlooked for roles that she'd be comfortable with based on how people in the industry perceive her. In that way, her faith, to a degree, hinders her career.
Bure also made it clear that there's a distinction to be made between being a Christian actress and an actress who is a Christian.
"I'm a Christian through and through. I'm not a Christian actress," she said. "I'm an actress who is a Christian. I've actually done very few Christian films ... I don't need a Christian label slapped on what I do so that it complements my faith that way."
Bure said that she first started attending church with her family when she was 12 years old. Before that, though, the family had never really discussed religion.
"I would say I became a Christian or at least I asked Jesus to be the lord of my life at 12 years old." Bure said. "Honestly that didn't mean much to me. That certainly carried with me. I didn't really understand all of it."
It wasn't until she was in her 20s that her faith really began to resonate. Her brother, "Growing Pains" actor Kirk Cameron, gave her a book -- Ray Comfort's "The Way of the Master" -- and it was then, she said, that Christianity truly began to make sense to her.
"My whole thing was that I always thought I was such a good person ... [I would think] I'm such a good person compared to other child stars," Bure said. "I was a people pleaser. ... I never really understood my need for Jesus, because I never really saw myself as a sinner."
Actress Candace Cameron Bure on the set of Hallmark Channel's "Home & Family Holiday Special." (Getty Images/Paul Redmond)
But Comfort's book changed all that for her.
"I recognized for the first time, 'Oh, I guess I'm not as good as I thought I was. I am good by worldly status ... but God has a different standard,'" Bure said.
Even though her faith didn't take root until her 20s, Bure said her parents always kept a close watch over her and Kirk.
The Cameron family ensured that their famous kids avoided parties and really only went to events that were sanctioned by the television network or related to important charities.
And since Bure has been acting since she was just 5 years old, that watchful eye was helpful in keeping her on track as a child star.
"For me, I can always just go back to my parents and my faith," she said. "They did a great job of being very involved. Our lives were never really about the industry."
She added, "It was like a broken record with my parents in a good way. That's why I didn't get into drugs."
After taking a hiatus from acting to raise her children, Bure is once again acting and in her new book, she discusses how she has juggled "roles, responsibilities, and opportunities" over the years.
In every interview, Bure said she's been asked one simple question: "How do you juggle life with family and keep doing the things that are important to you -- keeping them first like your faith and friends?"
It's this question that Bure said inspired her to write "Balancing It All."
"Everybody's life is unique ... so I wasn't about to write a 'how to' kind of book. There's not a one size fits all," she told TheBlaze. "It brings you through my life growing up through the industry. All those pivotal moments in my life -- getting married, having children."
Bure said that her life is quite the balancing act. She said she's not perfect, and that it takes effort to keep her priorities in check.
"I don't want anyone to think I'm this perfect person who does it all and that I do it perfectly every day," she said. "There's times and seasons where I get out of whack -- and the first thing I can always go back to is my faith."
Candace Cameron Bure with former "Full House" co-stars John Stamos, center, and Bob Saget at the Starlight Awards at the Skirball Cultural Center on Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Invision for Starlight Children's Foundation)
One of the litmus tests Bure uses to be sure she's keeping her priorities in order is questioning when she last read her Bible. It's when she goes too long without reading scripture that she generally feels something isn't quite right.
"It's also with the help of my husband that we keep each other in check," she said. "You can feel when its not going right [and we say] 'Let's get back to the word of God.'"
Bure said she absolutely loves acting, calling it her "passion" and telling TheBlaze that, aside from her family, she has "no greater joy than being on a set and working."
As for the "Full House" cast, the actress said that they all remain extremely close and that they have been like family since the show concluded.
"We're all really close," she said. "We hang out individually. We hang out together."
