I recently watched the movie Mully, and I have to tell you, it is one of those rare stories that doesn’t just entertain you—it shakes you to your core and makes you re-evaluate everything you think you know about success and purpose.

The story of Dr. Charles Mully is a breathtaking journey from the absolute bottom of society to the heights of wealth, and then to a different kind of greatness that most people would call “total madness”.

Drawing from the sources, I want to share some reflections on this incredible man’s life and the lessons we can all learn from his refusal to give up.

The Boy Who Refused to Quit

What struck me first was the sheer heartbreak of his childhood. Imagine being a young boy, living in a small hut with your family, and waking up one morning to find that everyone is gone.

His parents deserted him, leaving him completely alone and abandoned to fend for himself. For about ten years, Mulli lived as a beggar, pleading for food and sometimes even stealing just to survive.

He became a “street boy,” filled with hatred and so desperate that he even considered taking his own life because he felt his existence had no meaning.

But there was a spark in him that wouldn’t die. After a young man invited him to a fellowship where he heard about forgiveness and the power of faith, a new hope was planted in his heart.

With no money in his pocket, he walked for three and a half days to Nairobi to find a new life. He didn’t have an education, but he had a willingness to work.

He started by knocking on gates in rich neighborhoods until a woman finally let him in to wash dishes and cut grass. He went from being a beggar to a houseboy, and within six months, his hard work led to a promotion as a manager overseeing 800 workers.

This was just the beginning of his incredible rise.

Building a Kingdom

I was deeply inspired by how Mully transitioned into the world of business. He had a dream to make money, and he saw a massive need for transportation. He started with a single “matatu”—a taxi vehicle—and worked tirelessly, often without sleep.

That one vehicle turned into a fleet of buses, which eventually grew into “Mullyways Agencies Limited”.

By the mid-1980s, Charles Mully was a self-made millionaire. He owned an insurance company, a real estate business, and held a monopoly on oil and gas products in Western Kenya.

He lived a life of luxury, driving a Mercedes-Benz from Germany, building the first stone house in his area, and traveling the world to places like New York and Europe.

He had reached the “highest point” from the “bottom,” and he felt the power of having money in his hands.

The Conflict of Purpose

It was at this peak of success that everything changed. While Mully was enjoying his wealth, he found himself tormented by the faces of the street children he saw every day. He saw himself in them.

After a four-hour struggle with God in his car, he finally surrendered and said, “Yes God, use me.”

This decision led to what the sources describe as a period of intense conflict, especially within his own family. One evening at dinner, he dropped a bombshell: he told his wife and children that he would never do business again and would never work for money.

He intended to sell everything to help street children. His family was shocked; his wife looked perplexed, and his children felt as though the world had collapsed beneath their feet.

The transition was not easy. People in the community called him crazy. His biological children struggled immensely as their home, once meticulously clean and private, was suddenly filled with hundreds of street children who “smelled bad” and “broke the toilet.”

His own kids even felt abandoned when they were sent to boarding school so that Mully and his wife, Esther, could focus on the rescue mission. One of his daughters even recalled seeing another girl wearing her favorite yellow dress.

It was a period of deep sacrifice where the family had to rely on each other as they lost friends and financial security.

The Desert Blooms: Ndalani and Beyond

The move to a property in Ndalani in 1995 was perhaps the most challenging phase. It was a dry, hot “desert” with no water or electricity. The children he rescued were often sick, and some even wanted to run back to the streets because the conditions were so harsh.

However, Mully’s vision remained unshakable. When a severe drought hit and the children were dying from bad water, Mully prayed and felt led to a specific spot on the property.

Despite the skepticism of workers who refused to dig, Mully and his sons started digging into the hard volcanic rock. In what can only be described as a miracle, they hit water, and it came firing out of the ground.

This water became the lifeblood of what is now the Mully Children’s Family (MCF). They didn’t just build a home; they built a self-sustaining ecosystem.

They started large-scale farming, using a 600,000-square-foot greenhouse and a hydroponic system to grow crops for the family and for export to Europe. They even started fish farming and launched a massive climate change initiative.

To date, they have planted over 1.5 billion trees, creating a micro-climate that has brought regular rainfall back to the area.

A Legacy of Transformation

Today, MCF is the “World’s Largest Family”. Mully’s mentorship has impacted over 28,000 lives. These children, who once had no hope, have transformed into doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, and managers.

One alumnus even became an advocate of the High Court of Kenya after being rescued following post-election violence.

Mully’s life teaches us that no one is “beyond saving” and that true success isn’t measured by the cars you drive or the size of your bank account. It is measured by the lives you uplift.

He reminds us that we can trust God not only with our strength but also with our “weaknesses and our burdens.”

Watching his story makes me realize that when you find your real purpose, the conflicts and sacrifices are just stepping stones. Today, MCF is not just a ministry; it is a “movement of hope, compassion, and love.”

As Mully himself says, he works because he knows that with God, “everything is possible.”

I hope this story inspires you as much as it has inspired me to look at the “street children” in our own lives—whatever form they may take—and realize that we have the power to change the world if we just have the courage to say “yes.”