Dedicatory Prayer for Fort Lauderdale Florida Temple

• 12 May 2014

The Fort Lauderdale Florida Temple is the Church’s 143rd operating temple and the second in the state of Florida. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, dedicated it on Sunday, May 4.  Photo by Gerry Avant.

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Following is the text of the prayer President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, offered in dedicating the Fort Lauderdale Florida Temple on Sunday, May 4, 2014.

O God, our Eternal Father, our humble hearts are filled with gratitude and love for Thee on this long-awaited day of dedication. We ask for Thy Holy Spirit to attend us during the dedication of the Fort Lauderdale Florida Temple. We rejoice in this day of celebration, and our hearts are filled with praise to Thee.

We are grateful for Thy Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, and the restored gospel. We thank Thee for the Prophet Joseph Smith, through whom Thou hast revealed eternal gospel principles and practices, including the ordinances of Thy holy house. We thank Thee for a living prophet in our days, even President Thomas S. Monson; we love him, we sustain him, and we pray for him.

We thank Thee for the generations of faithful Saints who have gone before in this sacred work, for their sacrifices, courage, and faith, and for all who are building Thy work and kingdom today.

We give thanks and pray for a blessing for the many who were instrumental in building this beautiful house of the Lord.

We ask Thee to touch the lives and hearts of the people who live in this state and nation, that they will seek out and hearken to the message of truth and come into the fold of Christ. Please continue to bring about the miracle of conversion among the great and good people of this land. Thou hast sent Thy prophet Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to their fathers. This holy temple opens the gates to eternity that these purposes may be fulfilled.

Dearest Father, forgive us our many shortcomings. Strengthen our faith and fortify us against weakness. Give us power to resist the deceits of the adversary. May love for Thee and Thy Son grow in our hearts, and may it be expressed in our kindness and love to one another as Thy covenant sons and daughters.

And now, acting in the authority of the everlasting priesthood, and as Thy humble servants, we dedicate to Thee and Thy Beloved Son the Fort Lauderdale Florida Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We dedicate the grounds on which it stands with all its vegetation. We dedicate the building from the footings to the top of the steeple with its crowning figure of Moroni. We dedicate the walls and windows, that they may stand firm against the storms of nature and be looked upon with reverence and respect. We dedicate the interior structure, the baptistry, the endowment rooms, the celestial room, and the sealing rooms with their sacred altars. We dedicate all of the halls and spaces, the offices and other facilities in this temple.

Wilt Thou accept this Thy holy house as the gift of our hearts and hands. Wilt Thou honor it with Thy presence. May Thy Holy Spirit dwell here at all times and be felt by all who come within its portals. May a mantle of holiness come upon this sacred edifice. May it stand as a beacon of everlasting truth and light and as an invitation to come unto Thee. Wilt Thou protect this temple from any harm or defilement.

May all who enter do so worthily. Wilt Thou seal upon them an endowment of righteousness that will become a guardian throughout their lives.

Bless the youth of Thy Church that they will receive an understanding of the eternity and divinity of Thy work. May they be true and faithful throughout their lives.

Bless all who enter this temple as patrons, workers, or in any other capacity, that Thy sacred covenants and ordinances may be deeply anchored in their minds and hearts. May they know that the service they give is service unto Thee, and may they find joy therein.

We pray for the temple president and his counselors and for the matron and her assistants.

We thank Thee for faithful tithe payers throughout the world whose consecrated offerings have made possible this and other temples. Open the windows of heaven and shower down blessings upon them. May they feel Thy love, and may Thine encircling arms of mercy be round about them.

Our Father in Heaven, we love Thee and Thy Beloved Son. We thank Thee for His atoning sacrifice. All the blessings of this temple rest upon that great divine act of love given by Thy Son, the Savior of all mankind.

Accept our thanks and love, dear Father. We dedicate this temple and its surroundings unto Thee, and we rededicate ourselves to Thee and Thy service, in the name of our Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, amen.

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