Turning Even the Inclination to Evil Toward Good
Man was made with two inclinations so that he could learn from everything, even the yetzer hara, and make it serve Hashem.
Why did the Torah place Rivkah's anguished question, why am I, beside the struggle of her two children? The Degel reads it as a hint about the two inclinations in every person. Man was created with both so that he would strive to turn the yetzer hara into good, serving Hashem through everything, as the Mishnah says that the wise person learns from everyone, and as Rav Yaakov Yosef of Polnoye adds, even from the yetzer hara. When Hashem grants a person da'as, he may look at his deeds and be horrified, asking why he came into the world. He begins to search for the truth of avodah. An answer comes through a trusted friend: his service had been mixed with pride, good tangled with bad, and the real work is to separate them.
Source: Degel Machaneh Ephraim, Toldos (Toldot 4)
Few of our best deeds are perfectly pure, and the Degel does not ask us to despair about that. Today, take one good thing you did recently, a kindness, some learning, a prayer, and look honestly at what was mixed into it, perhaps a wish for credit or a hint of pride. Without harshness, name it to yourself and decide how to act more purely next time. If a friend gently shows you something you missed, thank him. Disappointment in yourself can be the first step toward honest service.