“The use of steroids and amphetamines amongst today’s players has greatly subsided and is virtually nonexistent. The so-called ‘steroid era’ is clearly a thing of the past.”–
Bud Selig- Major League Baseball Commissioner,
January 2010
Since this statement was uttered, a full 19 Major League Baseball players have been suspended for steroids.
Three of those players were former league MVPs…and that’s just since 2010.
Is my point to rip on Bud Selig and A-Rod? Only partly.
The more important part is to make a simple point.
We are never done.
Unless we are diligent, constantly checking ourselves and striving to be better, our past tends to catch up to us. As much as we’d love to leave it behind, objects in mirror are closer than they appear.
We can make pronouncements, resolutions and turn over countless new leaves. And yet we still remain one bad decision from a relapse.
Am I talking about drugs, adultery, gambling or cheeseburgers?
You tell me.
Just know that making progress takes work, constant attention, engagement and support.
Getting your shit together may take work.
Keeping it together takes more.
***
What part of your past is dead and gone?
How can you keep it that way?
Who can you ask for help?
Raise Your Ebenezer 
All the more reason to surround ourselves with a strong circle of friends to keep us on the right path. A big challenge, as friends, is whether we are willing to rebuke someone close to us when we see that they may be heading down the wrong path. In addtion to friend support, it can’t hurt to ask God for help in overcoming our stuggles and for continued strength to keep it together.