Faith briefs

Nixon to be installed as pastor

* The Rev. Brian L. Nixon will be installed as pastor of Transforming Faith Baptist Church, which worships at 1321 N. Moore Road, in services at New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, 3777 Wilcox Blvd., today and Sunday.

A praise and worship service featuring the Rev. Jeffrey Robinson, pastor of St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church, in Oak City, N.C., will be today at 5 p.m. The installation service, led by the Rev. Wayne L. Johnson, pastor of New Hope Baptist, will be Sunday at 4 p.m.

The 9:30 a.m. Sunday service will be at the 4-year-old church's North Moore Road home, with the Rev. Sidney Locks Jr., pastor of Cornerstone Missionary Baptist in Greenville, N.C., speaking.

Mr. Nixon, a North Carolina native, received a bachelor's degree in economics and business from North Carolina State University and later worked for the Dupont Co. He did graduate work in divinity at Shaw University.

He was called into the ministry in 1995 and became pastor of Holy Trinity Baptist in Pungoteague, Va., in 2005. Prior to becoming pastor of Transforming Faith Baptist, he was a member of New Hope Missionary Baptist.

He and his wife, Kimberly, have three children, Amber, Brandon and Christa.

Ebenezer Baptist to install Harris

* The Rev. James C. Harris Jr. will be installed as pastor of Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church, 1614 Bailey Ave., on Sunday at 4 p.m. The speaker will be the Rev. Jeffery Jefferson, pastor of First Baptist of Lookout Mountain, Tenn. A reception will follow the service.

Mr. Harris has been preaching for 32 years and was ordained at Mount Canaan Baptist in 1984. He has been an active member of Clergy Koinonia and several community boards.

Assistance

* The Feed My Sheep Ministry of Allen Temple African Methodist Episcopal Church, 817 Dodson Ave., will offer free clothes, shoes and food today from 11 a.m. until supplies are exhausted. The food offered includes spaghetti, pinto beans, white beans, cole slaw, cornbread, iced tea and coffee. For information, call Sarah Harden at 624-4364.

Easter walk-through

* The 15th annual SonRise Resurrection pageant will be offered at Collegedale Seventh-day Adventist Church Saturday, April 3, from 8:45 a.m. to 2 p.m. The interactive walk-through of Christ's last days begins and ends at the church, traverses one mile across the campus of Southern Adventist University and features six scenes and some 500 costumed cast members. Free tickets for the walk-through will be available in front of Barnie's Coffee & Tea Co. at Hamilton Place mall beginning Monday at 7 a.m. Those without tickets may attend the 2 p.m. walk-through on April 3.

Enrichment

* "Christianity and Psychology: Five Views," a free multi-perspectival symposium, will offer four lectures and a panel discussion today at Bryan College (Rudd Auditorium) in Dayton, Tenn. The lectures, which are part of the Bryan Institute for Critical Thought and Practice, are "A Christian View of Persons and the Advance of Psychological Science: An Integrative Perspective" by Dr. Stanton Jones, provost of Wheaton College, at 9 a.m.; "Whose Psychology? Which Rationality? Christian Psychology After Postmodernism" by Dr. Paul Watson, University of Chattanooga Foundation professor and head of psychology at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, at 10:30 a.m.; "Psychology in the Spirit: A Transformational Approach to Psychology and Christianity" by Dr. John Coe, professor of spiritual theology and philosophy at Talbot School of Theology and Rosemead Graduate School of Psychology at Biola University, at 1 p.m.; and "The Question of Causality: Nature, Nurture and a Whole Lot More" by Dr. David Powlison, counselor and faculty member at the Christian Counselor and Education Foundation and Westminster Theological Seminary, at 2:30 p.m. The panel discussion is at 4 p.m. For information, call 775-7265 or visit www.bryan.edu.

* Ooltewah United Methodist Church, 6131 Relocation Way, will offer Career Link, a series of three free luncheon seminars offering encouragement and practical support to unemployed job hunters, on Mondays from noon to 2 p.m. On March 22, the topics are Resume Writing/Internet Resources and Educational/Vocational Options; on March 29, Reinventing Yourself and Free Job Hunting Help; and on April 5, Managing Money and Surviving Financially Between Jobs. For registration or information, call the church at 238-9216 or visit www.ooltewahumc.org.

* First Things First will teach a series of relationship classes at a family conference on Friday from 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, March 27, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Living Word Church, 930 25th St. N.W., in Cleveland, Tenn. The classes will cover topics for teens, single adults and engaged and married couples. For information, call Andrea Perry at 267-5383 or e-mail andrea@firstthings.org.

* The Hamilton County Baptist Association will hold its annual associational Bible drill for grades 4-6 on Sunday, March 28, at 1:30 p.m., at Brainerd Hills Baptist Church, 6611 East Brainerd Road. For information, call Pam Keyes at 706-866-6673 or the association at 267-3794.

Music

* The Center for Creative Arts Concert Choir and Chamber Orchestra and the Choral Ensemble of Chattanooga Christian School will present John Rutter's "Gloria" and several shorter selections on Sunday at 3 p.m. at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 822 Belvoir Avenue. The cost is $5. For information, call Neshawn Calloway at 209-5929 or e-mail calloway_neshawn@hcde.org.

* Madisonville Presbyterian Church, located at 201 W. Main St. in Madisonville, Tenn., will host an interactive Scots-Irish ballad workshop by Sara Grey and her son, Kieron Means, on Monday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The workshop, sponsored by Monroe Area Council for the Arts and the Monroe County Historical Society, will trace the migration of songs from Scotland and Ireland to North America. The pair will then give a performance at 8 p.m. There is no cost to attend, but a $10 donation is suggested. For information, call 423-442-3210 or visit www.monroearts.com.

* Jim Ricketts will present a concert on Friday at 7 p.m. at East Ridge Christian Church, 1514 Rebecca Drive. For information, call Mr. Ricketts at 775-2806.

* The Heartfelt Gospel Music Association will host a fundraising taco dinner and gospel singing on Saturday, March 27, at Payne's Cove Methodist Church, 303 Charlie Roberts Road, in Pelham, Tenn. The $6 dinner begins at 5 p.m. CDT, and the singing, featuring nine gospel singing groups who help people with financial needs, is at 6 p.m. For information, call John Bean at 931-212-4292 or Ron Orange at 931-632-0056.

* The Jericho Brass will present a concert on Sunday, March 28, at 7 p.m., at Signal Crest United Methodist Church, 1005 Ridgeway Ave., on Signal Mountain. There is no charge to attend. For information, call the church at 886-2330 or visit www.SignalCrestUMC.org.

Retreats

* The Benedictine Sisters Retreat Center, 916 Convent Road in Cullman, Ala., will offer a Lenten Desert Day on Saturday, March 27, from 9:30 a.m. CDT to 4 p.m. The one-day retreat, intended to calm participants' lives as they approach Holy Week, will be led by Sister Mary McGehee. The cost, including lunch, is $30. A 40-hour overnight option is also available. For information or to register, call the retreat center at 256-734-8302 or visit retreats@shmon.org.

* The retreat "The Difference Between Poetry and Rhetoric: A Theology for the Writing Life" will be offered at St. Mary's Sewanee Center for Spiritual Development in Sewanee, Tenn., from Sunday, March 28, at 3 p.m. CDT, to Monday, March 29, at 3 p.m. The presenter, Victor Judge of Vanderbilt University Divinity School, a lecturer in religion and literature, will explore how writing can become a discipline within spiritual formation. The cost, including room and meals, is $100 for residents and $60, including meals, for commuters. For information, call Jean Jackson Hastings at 615-585-4287, e-mail jeanhastings@comcast.net or visit www.stmaryssewanee.org.

Women's events

* Mimi Neighbors, founder and president of Love Your Neighbor Ministries and chairwoman of the mentoring and family committee of the Tennessee Reentry Collaborative in Hamilton County, will be the featured speaker at the monthly meeting of the Scenic City Women's Network on Thursday at noon at First Presbyterian Church, 554 McCallie Ave. Her topic is "When Making Disciples -- Bloom Where You Are Planted." The cost is $10 for members and $12 for visitors. The deadline for reservations is Tuesday. For reservations, call 698-6262 or e-mail romaine@scwn.org.

* Covenant Keypers will offer the True Woman '10 Conference Thursday through Saturday, March 27, at the Chattanooga Convention Center. The speakers include Nancy Leigh DeMoss, an author and radio host; Mary Kassian, distinguished professor of women's studies at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; Dr. Voddie Baucham Jr., a pastor, church planter and author; Kay Arthur, co-founder of Precept Ministries International; James McDonald, founding and senior pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel in Illinois; Fern Nichols, founder of Moms In Touch International; Jennifer Rothschild, author and recording artist; and Dannah Gresh, author and leader of the faith-based abstinence movement to fight HIV/AIDS globally. The worship leaders are Irish composers and artists Keith and Kristyn Getty. Topics include personal faith, motherhood, women's global issues and a session for teens. The cost is $129 for adults and $94 for students ($159 and $124 after Monday). For information, call 423-838-5054 or visit www.reviveourhearts.com

Youth event

* The Greater Pilgrim Joy District youth prayer breakfast and Bible study will be today from 10 a.m. to noon at Philadelphia Missionary Baptist Church, 1957 Carter St. For information, call the church at 265-2409.