This topic of repentance, and altar calls reminds me of this verse in James,
James 1
22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
Repentance is not repentance if you simply recognize you have done wrong, but no action follows.
II Cor. 7:10 "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death."
So, in essence, repentance is not repentance unless it is accompanied with action. If you feel sorrow, and remorse for your deeds, but do not take action to turn from them, you have not repented.
This is why "working up emotion" in an altar call setting many times is fruitless, because people come to the call, feel sorry, but take no further action, believing that all they need to do is feel sorry for their actions. If they are not taught that unless their sorrow is accompanied with action that brings about change in their life, then repentance will not have taken place. They essentially have beheld their face in the mirror, saw things they didn't like, but instead of allowing the spirit of the Lord to change them and cause them to TURN AWAY from their sins... they turn away from that mirror, and comfort themselves that as long as they felt sorry, repentance took place, when in fact....
repentance without ACTION is not repentance.
James 1:22-25 needs to be understood in much greater depth when the gospel is being presented, and altar calls are being presented.
When one comes face to face with a holy God, recognizing, acknowledging, and repenting of the depth of sin present in one's life, it is only then, with this realization that the Lord can allow His spirit to truly reside in that heart, and bring about the change that needs to take place.