I did a similar course by correspondence, for two months. There was a big emphasis on recovery as well as the Bible Study, there was daily accountability and reflection - it was probably even harder and demanding than AA. Their approach was different to 12 steps, in several ways. They didn't like the use of labels. Alcoholism was viewed as a sin resulting from a distorted relationship with God. Salvation was through accepting Christ. (If that sounds fundamentalist, I'm actually quite an easygoing person in real life.) It worked for me, I'm long term sober. I'm understanding of people who choose AA though, there just aren't that many f2f options for lots of people.