Ahead of a Thursday night campaign rally in North Carolina, Mitt Romney made an impromptu stop to meet with the Rev. Billy Graham and his son, Franklin, at the reverend's home outside Asheville.

Romney didn't officially land the elder Graham's endorsement, but he came pretty close. The famed evangelist told Romney he would do whatever he could to "help" the GOP presidential candidate, according to a readout from the Romney campaign.

The vow came at the end of a 30-minute meeting between Romney and the Grahams, who talked about issues including Afghanistan, religious freedom and the growth of the Graham ministry in places like China, Sudan and North Korea.

Photographers and a television crew were allowed in during the final minutes of the meeting, where Graham was overheard asking Romney, "What can I do for you?"

"Prayer is the most helpful thing you can do for me," Romney replied.

According to Mark DeMoss, a senior Romney adviser who was at the meeting, Graham then led a prayer for Romney after the cameras left the room. Graham also told the former Massachusetts governor, "I'll do all I can to help you. And you can quote me on that."