Bill Bouknight tells the story of a certain isolated Pacific island where it was the custom that when a young man proposed marriage, he would announce his intention to the entire village. Then he and the whole community would go to the young woman's home. Her father would come outside and then -- in front of the community -- the father and suitor would barter.

The main item of value on the island was the cow. Therefore, a suitor would offer the father a certain number of cows for his daughter. The average bride was worth two cows, perhaps three if she was unusually bright or attractive. The all-time record was four cows.

The most eligible bachelor on the island was Johnny Lingo. He was handsome and wealthy. Imagine all the excitement among the women of the island when Johnny announced one day that he had selected a wife. But then he shocked everyone by announcing that his choice was a girl named Lisa. Lisa was not even in the top ten. She was regarded as rather plain and frightfully shy.

Some of the jokers in the crowd even suggested that Lisa's father might pay Johnny a cow or two.

The community gathered at Lisa's house for the bartering. Then came an even greater shock. Johnny's opening bid for Lisa was eight cows! Her father almost fainted, but he managed to say yes. That very evening Johnny and Lisa were married. They departed for their home on an adjacent island.

For a full year no one saw Johnny and Lisa. Then on their first anniversary they returned to visit their parents. From the moment they arrived at the dock, the grapevine went ballistic with gossip. Everybody said, "Come and see Johnny and Lisa! You won't believe it!" Everybody came, but nobody noticed Johnny. All eyes were on Lisa. She had been transformed! She was a vision of loveliness. She was poised, warm, friendly, and confident.

At the end of the day as Johnny and Lisa were preparing to return to their home, one of Johnny's long-time friends pulled him aside and said, "I want to know the secret of this amazing transformation in Lisa. How did it happen?"

Johnny said, "I will tell you. From the time Lisa was born, she had been treated as though she was not worth very much. She had begun to believe that about herself. But I announced to the community that she was an 8-cow wife, and I have treated her just that way. She has become that vision of herself that she sees every day in my eyes."

If you want an 8-cow wife or husband, or if you want to be an 8-cow Christian, you have to catch that vision first and then treat yourself and others that way. And God, the master change agent, may produce that 8-cow person that you envision!

As you read the story of Abraham and the rest of the great Patriarchs in the bible, you will notice at no time does God speak down to them even though they certainly deserved it.

After God told Abraham that he would be the “father of many nations” (Gen. 12:1-3), how did he respond? He went to live in Egypt and lied to the Pharaoh about Sarah being his sister rather than his wife (Gen. 12:10-13). Abraham was afraid that he would be killed if the Pharaoh saw his beautiful wife and wanted her to himself. So Abraham made his beautiful wife lie in order to save his own life because of fear that was motivated by his “imagination.”

Again, Abraham had done the very same thing this time to Abimelech, king of Gerar (Gen. 20). When confronted by the king afterwards about his lie, Abraham responded, “I thought. . .” (v. 11). In other word, his fear was again motivated by his overworked imagination.

In Genesis 12, God promised Abraham that he would be a great person and from him would come a great nation (Gen. 12). Then in chapter 15, God reaffirms His promise to him. One would think that since God promised this to Abraham, it would be God who would keep Abraham alive!

You see, we often hear about how Abraham was a great man of faith – and he was. But he also failed miserably at times too. Rather than trust God to keep him alive by telling the truth, he imagined what might happened to him and took matters into his own hands and lied about Sarah being his sister. Although he was partially right (Gen. 20:12), the important part he left out was that Sarah was his wife.

God could have slammed dunk Abraham with a few verbal lashings. But rather than doing so, God gave to Abraham a fulfillment of His promise through the birth of his son, Isaac (Gen. 21).

God kept Abraham alive even while he doubted God and lied about who his wife was – twice! God would have kept Abraham alive if he had told the truth as well and Sarah would not have been used as a pawn for his sinful intentions.

Listen carefully: Sin will make you look ugly and others too if you involve them in your plan. God sees you as an “8-cow person.” You are special, called, and good enough for His Son to die on Calvary’s cross for your sin and ultimate eternal destiny. That how God sees you. Don’t make yourself and others look rotten by taking fleshly matters into your own hands.

Trust God and you will look the way God sees you – special, unique and altogether beautiful