Tis the season … to find out if you finaled in a writers’ contest or not.

Ah, writers contests. We enter them with such high hopes, sending our formatted manuscripts or published books off to be judged. Numbers are tallied, comments are written, and decisions are made.

And then you find out through that longed-for phone call that you are a finalist – hopes satisfied! Or you find out through a long day of silence that you are not a finalist – hopes dashed.

There’s a lot that can be said when you final, and just as much can be said when you don’t. HaPpy DaNcEs happen on Facebook pages and friends commiserate with you in comments. I’ve done my fair share of both.

But recently I listened to a podcast by Andy Stanley, senior pastor of North Point Community Church in Atlanta, Georgia, that put the whole rigmarole of writing contests into perspective. No, he wasn’t speaking at a writers conference. But when he said “Everyone wants to be friended, followed, liked, and mentioned” I knew the topic would apply to writers.

We all know how social media – Facebook, Twitter, Google+ — plays such a huge part in a in a writer’s life, and that reality only ramps up during contest season. Do you have something to announce? Does your friend? Who’s celebrating? Who’s not?

Andy Stanley said a lot of good things during his podcast, but it was this one Scripture verse that put it all in perspective for me:

A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. John 3:27 NIV

This statement was spoken by John the Baptist when his disciples were upset that his followers were leaving him to follow Jesus. John knew who he was, what his purpose was – and he was content with what he was doing. Whether his followers stayed or left –whether he was followed or unfollowed – that was all up to God.

Now put John’s statement in context of your life as a writer, right now, in the midst of contest season:

A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. John 3:27 NIV

You can only final in a contest if that’s God’s plan for you. (Beth’s paraphrase.)

If you do final in a contest: Congratulations, and thank God that finaling was part of his plan for you at this time. What are you going to learn from it?

If you don’t final in a contest: Hugs. And know that this, too, was part of God’s plan for you at this time. What are you going to learn from it?