Matthew Robert Shaw:
12/10/1982 - We'll see...
If one were to ask him, Mr. Shaw would most likely say he were from Arizona, originally. Having lived in various states within the USA and a number of different countries abroad, he might boast a more-than-his-fair-share of sampling what the world has to offer in terms of culture and experience. Dearest to his heart, however, is his God, as he puts it: The God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Matthew.
Although the specific details are probably anything but typical, the main framework of his early life are probably quite typical... practically the stuff right out of a mainstream Hollywood movie: Broken home, rebellious teenage years... raging against God and authority.
At eighteen years of age, he had what he refers to as his "donkey experience", referencing the Biblical account of Bilaam the seer who had some sense talked to him by a donkey... a completely unexpected source. Deciding to turn his life around, Matthew entered a Christian Discipleship School. It was also at this time that his mother informed him that they are, in fact, Jewish. This started a long and difficult road whereby Matthew attempted to reconcile his faith with what the Scriptures actually say.
In his third year at the Discipleship school, he felt the call of God on his life to go to to the Land of Israel.
He met his wife in Israel while they were both volunteering at a ministry for the homeless in Israel. They then traveled to South Africa, to go through the process of acquiring her visa to come to the United States. Upon returning to the USA in late 2006, he got hired on a crew to frame houses in the greater Phoenix area. Just a few short months later, he entered into the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Detention Academy. Upon Graduation, he spent several years with the Office before a family emergency called him back overseas. While in South Africa, he became a certified instructor of Israeli Krav Maga. It was also during this time that he became a full-fledged Messianic Jew.
Having since become a seasoned teacher of Torah Observant Messianic Judaism, he has become a very vocal advocate for the observance of the Pilgrim Festivals and a regathering of the other Tribes of Israel, the Northern Kingdom.
Whether you are Jewish, Ephrayimish, or just coming to know the Messiah, he is the sort who would invite you to come, sit at his table or his fireside, eat his bread, and get to know and love the God of Israel.
