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Meet Our Pastor
John Callahan's Bio
The Reverend Dr. John Callahan is a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Princeton Theological and Pittsburgh Theological Seminaries. He served as associate pastor in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and as pastor of the Clinton United Presbyterian Church in Saxonburg, PA. He began his ministry with Morrow Presbyterian Church on Sunday, May 4, 2008.
John served on an administrative commission of the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta and the Good Shepherd Clinic Board of Directors of Morrow, GA. He also served for six years on the Examinations Committee of the Presbytery, which admits pastors into membership of the Presbytery. He currently serves on the Permanent Judicial Commission of the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta and occasionally as a Pastor Nominations Committee Liaison for the Presbytery.
John’s wife, Tamara, is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara, and served as Sunday School Superintendent and Moderator of the Presbyterian Women of Morrow Church. She currently serves as the organist of the church. She and John have two children, Parker and Amanda. Parker graduated from Union Grove High School and the University of Maryland with a focus on architecture. He is earning his Masters in Architecture from the Savannah College of Arts and Design (SCAD). Amanda also graduated from Union Grove and recently graduated from Valdosta State University with a degree in organizational leadership. She shares her talent of singing in our church. She joined the Children’s Choir of Spivey Hall for five years and sang and danced for her high school through the Advanced Women’s Chorus and Union Groove.
The Pastor's Pen
March 2026
I hate commercials. | don’t mind watching them during the Super
Bowl, because they are usually creative and funny, but otherwise I hate
them.
They are endured not only on the TV but also on the Internet. If I want to watch a video on YouTube, I have to wait 30 seconds for the commercial to run its course. Sometimes there is a 5-second option in a rectangular box at the lower-right corner. The "clock” counts down from 5 to 0, and then the rectangle says that I can “Skip the Ad.” I always punch that option. There are also commercials for apps now! | like to play three puzzle games, which I downloaded free onto my iPad, and they insist on put-
ting up commercials. Again, I might have the option to skip them, or I
might have to tolerate the 30-second to 45-second-long interruptions. I so
hate commercials.
Companies are always trying to get our attention. They have some-
thing to say, whether we need to hear it or not. They believe so strongly in
their messages that they inundate us with them. They broadcast them on
the TV and the Internet, on “free” apps, in magazines, and on billboards.
Even during the last Super Bowl, companies spent $10 million for a 30-
second chance to get our attention. Some people are more susceptible than
others to them. I admit that once in a blue moon a commercial will catch
my attention, and I feel the need to “improve my life” with their stuff.
God is trying to get our attention. God is always trying to tell us
something, always trying to show us something. God has grace and love to
share. God has a path for us to walk and spiritual disciplines to practice as
we walk. God is trying to attract us to him, and we need to pay attention.
God’s message is way more vital, way more life-giving, than any commercial could be.
Lent is one of those times in which we must pay closer attention to
God. God doesn’t speak only during Lent, but Lent puts us in a frame of
mind to listen and grasp God’s messages. We set aside several weeks be-
fore the death and resurrection of Jesus, and we take seriously what Christ’s
sacrifice means to us. We are broken, and so we need a Savior. We area
mess, and so we need Jesus to clean us from our sin and renew our bodies
from destruction. During Lent this message becomes so much clearer to us. We do a little more personal reflection, a little more worshipping and reading, a little more praying and devotional activity, and we find that we can hear God more clearly. God’s messages are coming through with little static or interruption.
e could probably do without commercials, but we cannot do without God’s advertisements of love and grace. We don’t want to punch the skip button. Let God speak and speak every moment of the day. During Lent let us continue to pay closer attention and receive what God has to offer.
Peace in Christ,
Rev. Dr. John