Houston Texas Mormon Temple

The Houston Texas Mormon Temple is the ninety-seventh temple for the Mormon Church. The Church members who live in this area know it was their spiritual preparation and the will of the Lord that made it possible for the Mormon Temple to be built in Houston.
At the groundbreaking in 1998, those in attendance were urged by Elder Christofferson to ask themselves the following questions: ‘What aspect of my life should I bring into harmony in the next two years? What do I need to give up? What do I need to yield? What should I add? Is my nature one of a sincerely broken heart and contrite spirit?’ He added that, “Over the door of the new temple will be the words ‘Holiness to the Lord’. What will make each of us more holy as we enter the temple doors?”1
Those who enter the Mormon temple must be in harmony with Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ, meaning that one must be worthy to enter the walls of the temple. Mormon Temples are sacred in nature; they are houses of learning where truths are taught and ordinances are performed. This knowledge motivates the participants to live a more Christ-like life.
In 1997 the search for a site on which to build the temple began. Steve Cook, a member of the Church who had helped the Church in purchasing real estate in the past, was asked to help find a site for the temple. Several parcels of land were located, especially one that belonged to a developer by the name of Don Hand. Brother Cook’s choice of land for the temple was the one belonging to Mr. Hand. However, the developer reserved this land for a project of his own and had no desire to sell it and mentioned that, ‘No amount of money would interest me in selling that property.’
In the mid-1980’s when the economy of Houston was struggling, Mr. Hand was hit quite hard financially and feared that he would have to file bankruptcy. Mr. Hand remembers praying to God and begging for His assistance and promising Him that if He would spare him financial ruin that he would one day pay the Lord back.
Mr. Hand had originally purchased 2,000 acres in the area of the Temple site. This land had been on the market prior to President Gordon B. Hinckley’s site-selection trip, but when he visited the city it was not available. President Hinckley visited the site anyway and informed Brother Cook that this was the site for the Houston Temple. Brother Cook worked hard to build a trusting relationship with Mr. Hand and continued to maintain an interest in the parcel of land. Because of a previous relationship with a different religious organization and the dishonesty they manifested, Mr. Hand was very skeptical of selling the land to any religious organization. But, because of the honesty that Brother Cook displayed, the softening of his heart, and the promise he had made to the Lord years earlier, he sold the land for the building of the Houston Temple. Brother Cook said, “It was astounding to me to witness the miracles that continually occurred in achieving the Lord’s purposes and seeing people’s hearts changed…to see the Lord exercise His influence in such a pragmatic way; he moves and touches men’s hearts to accomplish His purposes.”2
President Gordon B. Hinckley dedicated the Houston Texas Temple on August 26, 2000. The Temple serves over forty-four thousand members of the Mormon Church, which encompasses the southern half of Texas.

Mailing address:
15725 Champion Forest Drive
Klein, Texas 77379-7036
United States
Phone:   281-376-6804

For more information on Mormon Temples, please see the following websites:

USATODAY.com – Mormons open temple doors to share beliefs

Temple (Mormonism) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia