Updated: 2:58 p.m.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry, the longest-serving governor in Lone Star State history and probable GOP presidential candidate, held a gathering of an estimated 30,000 people at Reliant Stadium in Houston on Saturday.

“The Response: A Call to Prayer for a Nation in Crisis” was a public prayer for rain and, also, for America, but it definitely was not a political gathering led by a governor who is most likely running for president. (Perry has also called for prayers for rain in his drought-stricken state.)

Never you mind that the prayer-rain-dance-for-the-nation was the largest event held by a Republican candidate, declared or otherwise, so far this campaign season. There was absolutely no politics happening there.

So what if it is widely accepted that Perry will declare his candidacy this month? Please believe him when he says that any resemblance to politics and ramping up for his presidential campaign was purely coincidental. Saturday was simply about Jesus and a nation in crisis and maybe a little bit about that rain.

If politically active evangelical Christians responded to his call for prayer, was it his fault? How could he have known?

The event was simply a seven-hour prayer session with some chat about the economy and abortions and more rain.

It isn’t Perry’s fault that an unforeseen by-product of the gathering was a zero to 20 percent chance of rain in the Houston area for the rest of the month, and a significant uptick in his national name recognition.

Perry prayed for rain. It’s not his fault it didn’t take.

Correction: Aug. 29, 2011

While Gov. Rick Perry held several “pray-for-rain” events this spring during the historic Texas drought, the August “Response” event was a general prayer event, not focused on rain.