One of my earliest memories is of tent camping with my grandma. It rained three straight days, but that didn’t stop her from cooking Dinty Moore and popcorn over an open fire for my grandpa, sister and me. She invented activities, played games and fought the never-ending battle to keep our sleeping bags dry. I was convinced that she could do anything.

That’s why this Christmas was so hard.

In the last few years, my grandma—now in her 80s—has suffered excruciating back pain, loss of energy and increasing memory lapses. When I came home this Christmas, it was the first time that I visited her in an assisted living facility rather than her own house. She struggled to find the words for conversation, and the pain made it hard for her to leave her chair.

But as difficult as it was (and is) for me to see my grandma—the mother of four, pediatric nurse, cook extraordinaire—in distress, I knew that it was even harder for her caregivers: my parents, aunts and uncles. There are no clear courses of action in taking care of the mother they love. There are only hard decisions.

I have no wisdom of my own to offer solace in this situation. But I can turn to the Psalms, which were written for situations just like this. Sometimes the circumstances were different, but the sentiments were the same—a cry for comfort, an appeal for God’s intervention, a longing for this world that is full of pain to be made whole. Here are 5 Psalms that I pray will offer you or someone you love the words to pray in your own situation.

1. Psalm 62:1, 2 (GNTD) "I wait patiently for God to save me; I depend on him alone.He alone protects and saves me; he is my defender, and I shall never be defeated."
2. Psalm 69:16, 17 (GNTD)"Answer me, Lord, in the goodness of your constant love;in your great compassion turn to me!Don't hide yourself from your servant; I am in great trouble—answer me now!"
3. Psalm 71:3 (GNTD)"Be my secure shelter and a strong fortress to protect me; you are my refuge and defense."
4. Psalm 91: 1, 2 (GNTD)"Whoever goes to the Lord for safety, whoever remains under the protection of the Almighty,can say to him, 'You are my defender and protector. You are my God; in you I trust.’"
5. Psalm 94:18, 19 (GNTD) "I said, “I am falling”; but your constant love, O Lord, held me up.Whenever I am anxious and worried, you comfort me and make me glad."