A few thoughts, Skihigh --
First, welcome to our forum. If some comments sound abrasive, it's because many of us have seen or heard similar ideas many times before and we don't want you to make an expensive mistake, and result in killing yourself and/or your best pal.
Lifts are not to be undertaken lightly or blindly. Your post doesn't say where you are from, but for starters I'll just point out that an 8" lift is going to be illegal in almost every state. That's not a problem for an older person ("old fart" to save you the trouble) like me, living in the boonies and maybe using the Jeep primarily for off-roading. If you live in an urban area, use it as your daily driver, and you're 17 years old, you may be handing a cop a ready-made excuse to throw the book at you next time he sees you roll through a stop sign.
The cost of lifting an XJ is exponential. That is, if a 2" lift costs $100 a 4" lift doesn't cost twice as much, it costs four times as much because now more things need to be changed. At 8", almost everything needs to be changed. I'm glad to see you're thinking more toward the 4" range -- that's a much saner, more affordable way to get started.
Why are you so fixated on a '96? There are advantages and disadvantages. '96 was the first year for OBD-2, so if that's important to you go for it. However, OBD-2 means two oxygen sensors in the exhaust rather than one, and it means no Jet chip to boost performance. Many people prefer the older OBD-1 models because the ECU can be tweaked.
The '96 still only has one air bag, so you get no advantage over a '95 on that score.
More important to someone who wants a lift, '96 was the first year of the new "improved" transfer case output shaft. Prior to '96 you could generally lift up to 4" or so without driveline vibration problems. Starting in '96, any lift at all usually results in major vibration problems.
Between the on-board doagnostics and the transfer case output designs, IMHO you will be better served by a '95 rather than a '96. JMHO
I have a 89 Si that needs a motor, which is a good thing cause that rascal got me two fierce speeding tix within 6 months after 7 years of none. It was a 'between Jeeps' thing and I still don't understand. 
